Let's Just Live!
by Dyde21
Summary: Beacon High is known for having a rather advanced music program. After a brief hiatus, a certain program is returning. Join the gang as they decide to try out for the team and spend their senior year in a far different way than they had originally planned. Will they be able to handle what they suddenly find themselves in? Realworld!AU
1. The Announcement

This is my new series I will be working on! It is shaping up to be much longer than Arc's Metalworks, and I'm very excited about it. This was partially inspired by a story called Game On but SoulfulBard I'll explain some important stuff after the chapter. Till then, Enjoy!

XxXxXxXxX

Jaune opened the old, heavy door with a yawn. It was finally time for his favorite, and last, class of the day. Band. As soon as the old, mostly sound proof door opened, the cacophonous roar of some ungodly mixture of instruments as they warmed up and made sure they had all been assembled correctly, blasted his eardrums. Yet to him, it as if it was a warm welcome.

Some of the other students waved or smiled as they saw who had entered, others were busy with their own devices. Some ignored him. Such was band class though, one great big family formed through years of hard work, wrought with drama and infighting. He wouldn't have it any other way though.

Opening one of the lockers littering the wall, he shoved his backpack in there and pulled out his music folder, mallets, and drumsticks.

He closed the door to his little cubby with another yawn, struggling to stay awake. Having math after lunch was just a recipe for disaster. Luckily being in a classroom full loud horns was a perfect wake up call. As the door to his little cubby was closed, he was met by a pair of friendly green eyes looking back at him, a warm smile making him feel at ease.

"Hey Pyrrha." He offered.

Pyrrha just grinned, holding up a small little plastic container full of apple slices to him. "Some healthy fruit snacks to wake up?"

Eagerly he took one, chewing it happily. "You're the best."

Beaming, Pyrrha took one herself before depositing the container back in her own cubby next to his, withdrawing her own mallets and drumsticks and folder. "I know." She chirped happily.

Jaune could always count on Pyrrha to have some sort of snack if he needed one, even when he didn't. She always seemed to have food around her, a fact that made him overjoyed.

Knowing hunger can be distracting, and enjoying seeing Jaune smile, she found it no hassle to always just have simple snack on hand, plus she preferred eating in smaller meals rather than three big ones. Though Yang liked to tease that she took the phrase "The fastest way to a man's heart is his stomach" too seriously, she'd tirelessly deny it.

They both just laughed as they made their way to the back of the room to begin setting up the percussion section.

Across the room, Yang closed her own locker watching them. "He seriously has no clue. She seriously has no spine. This is maddening." She complained to her best friend Blake.

The raven haired girl just let out a simple. "Mmm." at her friend's usual complaint. She was still engrossed in her novel, determined to use every last second until class started to continue reading it.

Glancing over at her friend, Yang was mildly annoyed she wasn't being very fun today. "You have a lot of courage reading smut in the middle of class."

Blake's book snapped shut as she turned to Yang, who could have sword she heard a hiss. "It's not smut! It's just a romance novel!"

There was the fun. "Sure. That's just a romance novel, and Weiss's house is only a modest sized apartment." Yang remarked, rolling her eyes.

Across the room, said girl scoffed, having overheard the quip. Before she could set her friend straight, her other friend bounced into the room. "Weiss! Thank you for letting me borrow your notes." Ruby chirped happily, handing her back the notebook she had borrowed, surprisingly still in pristine condition. Better than it was usually returned.

"You can't properly practice for our next concert if you're trying to play catch up in history. It's the least I can do for the band." She offered, looking away.

Ruby pouted for just a moment, before grinning anyway and pulling her friend into a hug. "You're the best Weiss."

Weiss just rolled her eyes, before returning the hug for the briefest second.

"What? You're too old to hug your big sis too now? You can only hug your girlfriend?" Yang interrupted suddenly, wrapping Ruby in a bear-hug and spinning her around.

"She's not my girlfriend!" Ruby responded suddenly, pushing against her sister's shoulders. "And you're going to break my spine!" She snapped, flailing as she tried to free herself from her sister's monster grasp.

"Did someone mention breaking bones?" A new voice chimed in happily, as the doors exploded open as Nora marched in, grinning. "I'm in!"

Ren managed to catch the door handle just before it would have slammed against the frame. He quietly closed it. "Perhaps we should wait to see who we're attacking before we join in." He offered to Nora.

"But that's no fun. Besides, Ruby mentioned it! Any enemy of Ruby is an enemy of mine!" She said determinedly, glaring at Yang. "Xiao Long! It is on!"

Yang unceremoniously dropped Ruby, turning to Nora with a smirk. "Feeling tough today, Valkyrie?" As she dropped into a wrestler's stance.

In the back of the room, Jaune had stood up. "We should probably stop this..."

Pyrrha just grabbed his hand, holding him in place. "I don't think we could if we wanted to." She remarked, before blushing and dropping his hand, though Jaune had hardly noticed.

"What brutes." Weiss said with a scoff, flipping her hair over her shoulder, though her eyes remained glued to the pair, curiosity getting the better of her.

"Jaune! Sound the bell!" Nora ordered as she began to circle around Yang, grinning.

"I don't want any part of this!" He called out, crossing his arms.

"If you don't do it, you're next."

Jaune's face paled as a moment later he rang the gong.

Before either Yang or Nora could launch themselves at the other, the door opened and Professor Ozpin had walked in with a fresh cup of coffee, behind him his assistant Glynda cleared her throat.

Everyone froze, and in a minute's time everyone was seated in their proper seat, paying attention to the front obediently.

A small smile graced Ozpin's lips as he set his coffee down on his music stand. "I'm glad to see everyone is so lively today."

"Though I must remind everyone, fighting, whether friendly or not, is off limits on school grounds. If you feel the need to rough house, please take it somewhere else." Glynda scolded, making Nora and Yang flinch, before shooting a glance at each other and snickering. Everyone knew the two girls got along just fine, but also knew they liked to butt heads and never to get in-between them.

Ozpin looked over the class with a content smile. "Now then, we have an important announcement to make after class today. But for now, we'll start with our warm ups. #17 please."

Everyone settled into their places, flipping their books to the right warm-up they all practically knew by heart by now.

Yang, Pyrrha, and Jaune were all nestled in the percussion section along with a few others. Yang was at the Xylophone, pouting because she hated mallet instruments, but a drum set was hardly good at harmonizing to help everyone nail down their pitches. Jaune and Pyrrha, as usual, were sharing the large marimba in the back. Pyrrha was a sort of prodigy when it came to percussion instruments, and actually had attended a national competition for high school marimba players. When Jaune had joined, he had struggled a bit to keep up with the rather advanced band, but Pyrrha had taken him under her wing and gave him extra lessons on the mallets to help him catch up.

Just in front of them was Nora who was sitting in the trombone section, wielding the large instrument with ease.

In the row in front of her, Ruby sat on the far side with her alto saxophone. She was still a bit of a beginner when it came to the instrument, but she was a faster learned and had received help from her dad. Yang had suggested she joined band, in order to fit in a little more despite her unusual enrollment. That way, she'd at least find a family in the band.

A little further down the row sat Ren, adjusting the reed on his oboe. Ren was talented in both the Oboe and Bassoon naturally, a mystery to most people, yet envied. Music colleges craved Oboe and Bassoon players, the instrument proving a challenge to play well, and hardly the one with the most interest. Yet Ren seemed to manage just fine. Nora said it's cause he's just amazing, but others looked for a more helpful explanation.

In the front row, Blake and Weiss found themselves on opposite ends. Blake was patiently waiting to begin, her clarinet ready. Weiss, of course, had already memorized the warm-up but was still turning to the page anyway after Ozpin had insisted it was always helpful to have a reminder. Weiss still hardly looked at the page, she had it down to a perfect muscle memory on her flute after all.

Ozpin raised his hand as everyone blew the first note. He sighed, cutting them off with a flick of his wrist. "We're not here to play around. We do have a concert in a few weeks. While I certainly do wish this to be a class that you all look forward to, and you have fun here, but we must give it our all. So now then, again." He lectured as he motioned for them to begin again.

Satisfied with the opening note, he conducted them through the rest. Soon enough, the warm-ups had been stumbled through and they were moving on to their music.

"Now then, our first song." He started off. Instantly, all the percussionists dropped to the ground.

Nora looked back and snickered, seeing their defeated faces.

Yes, the band practice had a sort of hierarchy. When it came to review, the process was rather routine. It started off with the woodwinds, until they could play it comfortably, then the brass, then finally the percussion had their chance. Which meant a lot of downtime for the poor students stuck in the back of the class.

It wasn't necessarily from malicious intent that Ozpin had delegated the percussionists so much downtime, but rather it was the nature of band practice. Woodwinds and Brass required players to harmonize notes, while percussion needed only correct tempo, and to hit the correct spots, or keys, in order to play their part correctly. Plus, much of percussion was so sporadic, it was hard to practice on their own. A cymbal crash here, followed by 24 measures of rest until Jaune would have to play a few bars on the marimba was hardly something that was reasonable to hold up class to practice. No, they would have to learn as they went, with outside practice, careful counting, and the occasional actual stoppage of class when a particularly important or difficult part required attention.

So as Ozpin began to drill the woodwinds, Pyrrha shuffled over next to Jaune. She saw him staring at his sheet of music intently, drumming on his lap with his hands to make sure he could get the rhythm right. Watching him careful, she hummed in approval, noticing he was spot on. His practice must have been paying off finally.

Boy, did he practice. That was one of the many things Pyrrha admired about her friend. She knew how often he would spend an hour or two after school in the practice room, running over whatever piece of music he was struggling with. Often times she stayed to practice with him, helping with anything she had learned from her years of experience. He always asked if she was sure, feeling guilty about taking up her time but there was nothing Pyrrha would rather be doing.

Both Pyrrha and Jaune had transferred to Beacon High last year, their junior year. Pyrrha's parents, while incredibly doting and supportive of... well... anything she did, had found a better job opportunity in this city. They had felt bad about moving her away from her friends, but Pyrrha was determined to make sure her parents wouldn't pass on a good opportunity for her sake. Besides, she had felt a growing distance between herself and her old friends. As her latent ability to play instruments began to really show itself, jealousy had grown along with the admiration, making her feel more and more detached as they had stopped asking her to hang out with them, or practicing with her.

Jaune, as she had come to learn, had sort of had his hand forced. His large family had been living in a neighboring city, but his dad had landed an opportunity to work across country on the east coast. Which meant moving their whole family. Jaune hadn't wanted to give up living in Oregon, he had come to enjoy things here too much. Also, he had confided in her one late night when they had gone out to get some milkshakes, he had wanted some space. Having 7 sisters meant attention was always split, and that he knew it was a burden financially to support him as well. So he had taken his one chance. His oldest sister, Alice, had moved out and was staying in an apartment on her own. She was old enough to take care of him, and had quickly agreed after he had come to her in an honest talk. Pyrrha had come to known his older sister over the past year, and admired her, and the bond she shared with her brother.

Noticing Jaune had finished running through his music, he just closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall.

Pyrrha scooted over, nudging his shoulder slightly. Without opening an eye, he leaned over and rested his head on her shoulder. Pyrrha was grateful that the marimba could hide her blush from the rest of the band, though Yang was snickering from across the room.

Words couldn't express how grateful Pyrrha was to have formed her friendship with Jaune. When people had learned of her past accomplishments in the world of music, many had reacted the usual way. Jealousy or admiration. Even some of her close friends now, such as Weiss had seen her for what she did, not who she was. Jaune, however, had only found it cool but treated her just like everyone else. She wasn't sure if it was a product of his low self esteem that made her seem like everyone else above him that let him look past her accomplishments without jealousy, or his usually humble nature. But she was grateful for it. When she had seen him desperately trying to do the scales on the marimba after school one day when she had come back for a binder she had left behind, she had seen for the first time how hard he worked. She would never forget that expression of frustration and determination as she watched him repeat the same scale over and over again.

In hindsight, her offer to teach him may have been a tad presumptuous, but she had meant it honestly. At first Jaune hadn't reacted well and they had even fought a bit. However, after an argument with Yang and Nora, who Pyrrha had both quickly bonded with as well, she had been surprised when he had come to her in an apology.

She had been shocked by the honesty he showed that night. It had been clear, he truly regretted being rude to her and that he had just wanted to prove he could do it on his own. However he hadn't made excuses, his first words to her had been an honest apology. But he knew she was just trying to help, and had humbled himself to ask for her help. It hard taken Pyrrha hardly a moment to decide to help the adorable clumsy blonde, and they had only grown closer since then. Perhaps not as close as she would have hoped, but the progress was promising to her at least.

Letting her eyes slide shut, she leaned her head on Jaune's, while she kept her ears open for the sound of the teacher's instructions.

Leaning against the back of the piano, Yang stared at the duo resting behind the marimba with a mild sigh. She really hadn't seen to people grow so close so quickly before. They were practically attached at the hip, dating in every sense of the word except literally. It drove her mad, but after a meeting with their circle of friends, they had decided to let them come to it on their own terms. Meddling was bad, after the great Jaune-Weiss Fiasco of 2015, they knew Jaune had learned a lesson. The healthiest relationship Arkos, as she called them, could get into would be one where they both overcame their respective issues on their own. Otherwise things could get messy, and while Yang could enjoy drama from time to time, she did not want it in her group of friends who she considered family. No, she wouldn't stand for that again. The pain she had seen Pyrrha in when Jaune went after Weiss, the poor misunderstandings and naivety that Jaune had suffered from when he had stuck with his crush too long, and the coldness, and anger Weiss had shown to Jaune, in part due to his own excessive persistence, and in part due to her own baggage, had nearly torn their freshly formed circle of friends apart.

People had chosen sides, words had been thrown around in anger that should have never been said, and a lot of hard lessons had to have been learned. Yang knew they had grown stronger, and closer together, because of it. But that period of time had been miserable for many of them, that Yang took it upon herself to ensure that she didn't need to see her friends in such pain again. Especially when she had seen her sister upset because two of her best friends were so at odds with each other. By now even Jaune and Weiss had moved past it to become friends by this point.

Yang was the oldest in the group, and thus it was her job to take care of them, or so she had convinced herself. Though, after another glance at the pair, she wasn't how long she could last before she locked them in the drum closet until they made out and hooked up.

Her eyes shifted over to her sister, who seemed to be playing her little heart out on the saxophone. Since her last year, she had moved up to the first chair. A fact that certainly had caused a bit of drama in of itself, but it had sorted itself out when they saw how hard she worked.

Her best friend seemed to be doing just fine, even a little bored seemingly as they played. Blake was always quick to pick up whatever song they were playing. She might not have been a prodigy like Pyrrha was, but she certainly was one of the strongest musicians in the class. One would have thought that she came from a musical background, but that couldn't have been the furthest from the truth. Blake shook her head sadly as she remembered the hell Blake had gone through a few years ago. It was awful how a few bad decisions and poor friends could drag such a nice girl through the mud. Then again, on the other hand it wasn't like "proper" friends and family always did wonders for you either.

Yang had to admit that for all the arrogance and pride Weiss liked to show, she certainly could back it up with her musical talents. Her flute playing was by far the prettiest in the class, and her singing ended with her facing constant requests to quit band and join choir. Weiss refused, on the grounds that she enjoyed playing the flute and wasn't interested in whatever selection of songs the teacher happened to have chosen, but Yang knew it was cause she didn't want to be separated from her group of friends. Even if she was too stubborn to admit it at times.

"Percussion!" Ozpin called out. Immediately Jaune and Pyrrha popped up like gophers from behind the marimba, Jaune moving over to the marimba while Pyrrha took the timpani's for this particular piece. At first, their combined appearance had caused quite a few snickers and rumors flying around the band room. Over a year later though, and everyone had accepted them being around each other and normal, and only Nora was still snickering.

Yang grinned in Nora's direction as she took her own position at the snare drum, ready to play. It wasn't like Nora was much different from Pyrrha, she was practically attached to Ren. Even if they weren't "together together." As she had put it. They weren't in denial as much as their friends were, Nora saying since they had grown up together in foster homes they were practical siblings and it'd be "Weird" right? No one bought that argument, but they couldn't exactly argue against it either.

Staring at Ozpin intently, she followed Ozpin's count as they began playing.

Without interruption they had finished playing through the song, causing some of the woodwinds to look back in surprise. It wasn't often that Percussion had their stuff together on the first try when it wasn't an important moment. Percussionists certainly had a reputation for being a bit aloof that wasn't entirely undeserved.

Ozpin nodded. "Very good. Now this time, let's play it without gradually increasing the tempo by 20."

All the percussionists stared at him blankly. "We sped up?"

He nodded. "20 clicks that time."

"You always speed up." Nora helpfully added.

Jaune frowned. "I didn't notice we sped up." He muttered to Pyrrha.

She just smiled sheepishly. "I did a bit." It wasn't like she could control the tempo though, that was more of Yang's job on the snare.

"Yang! Don't speed up. I can't play that fast." Ruby whined, earning some murmurs of approval from the group.

"Sorry!" Yang offered with a grin. It hadn't been intentional, but when you're repeating the same pattern over and over again, it's sort of just a thing that happens.

"You did well to play that fast though, Jaune! You were right on the tempo we were going." Pyrrha praised, causing her friend to beam happily.

Yang just rolled her eyes at Pyrrha never missing a chance to bolster Jaune's confidence. Not that she would lie to him to do so, but she put Bob Ross to shame some days with her positivity.

"Now then." Ozpin said, starting to conduct again.

Soon enough the class was winding down, their practice going relatively smoothly.

Ozpin got a dangerous glint in his eye, causing the front row to shift nervously. "Now then, for our last run through let's have some fun shall we? We'll let percussion choose whatever tempo they like."

The room fell dead silent, save for the odd note that rang out as Jaune's mallet slipped from his shocked hand onto the marimba.

"Sir? Are you sure that's a good idea?" Weiss asked after moment, regaining her composure.

Yang just started cackling in the back of the room. "Oh fu- heck yeah!" She cheered out, crackling her knuckles as she began to drum on her leg very quickly, getting her rhythm down.

Ozpin just smiled. "Now, while this is for fun and no one needs to worry about missing some notes, I do ask that percussion keeps it reasonable. We do have some first year students in this band who are not as experienced." He explained, glancing at a few of the terrified saxophone and clarinet players.

A pout from Ruby caused Yang to sigh. "Okay, okay." She turned away. "Dangling a carrot in front of me then telling me only to take a bite." She muttered mostly to herself. Though, a breath later and she was facing forward again, grinning eagerly.

Ozpin just smiled at her. "Count it off, if you would Ms. Xiao Long."

A few students glanced back, seeing all the percussionists, lean forward with a dangerous glint in their eyes.

Yang tapped the edge of the snare drum, probably 40 beats faster than the song usually called for. Right before the final four taps of the countdown she merely said. "Strap in."

The resulting song was certainly an experience. It was chaotic, volume dynamics had completely been ignored, and a music stand had actually been knocked over by an over eager Nora who was having too much fun with her trombone.

By the end of the song, the whole class was laughing hard. It had started out nerve-wracking, a little difficult, but by the end, after a myriad of missed notes, solos that had been reduced to a few seconds, and a booming laugh breaking out from a tuba player, the tension had been dissolved and everyone was smiling.

The song came a cacophonous conclusion, and even Ozpin was laughing. Jaune had stumbled backwards, leaning against the wall as he clutched his stomach laughing. Pyrrha had wandered over, initially to check on him, but ended up leaning against him as she laughed herself. Yang just threw her hands up triumphantly as she grinned. Nora was cheering, Ren was just silently chuckling. Ruby was a bit flustered, having ended up over her head and totally blown her solo, but she was laughing herself. Blake was snickering, having managed to play at the higher tempo, but had found the whole ordeal fun.

Even Weiss had cracked a smile, able to just have fun after the tempo had gotten too fast for her to properly play. It was rare, but a sort of catharsis.

Now that everyone had loosened up, and class was reaching it's end Ozpin just patiently waited for the laughter to die down. "Now then, about the announcement I have to make." He said after a moment, causing everyone to freeze in place.

Very rarely did he give announcements, and usually they were rather important.

"As you may well know, last year our school faced some issues. Our budget had been cut, I had to take a year's absence, and one of our other instructors had quit. Meaning a certain program had to have been dropped for that year regrettably."

Most of the class stared at him in interested confusion, but Yang slammed her hand down on the snare, leaning over it. "You're not serious!" She rushed out, practically vibrating with anticipation.

Ozpin merely smiled, taking a sip of his coffee. "Yes Ms. Xiao Long. I'm afraid I am. Yes, this year marks the return of our indoor drumline program."

The room exploded into conversation. Yang flat out yelled in joy. Jaune and Pyrrha stared at each other, both grinning. They were _so_ going to audition for it. Ruby looked back at her sister eagerly. She had been afraid she wouldn't have had a chance to join one in high school. Ren just sighed as he began packing up his oboe, even before Nora had appeared next to him, already rambling about how they were going to audition together. It seemed he would have a lot of work ahead of him, not that he was against the idea. It would be fun after all. Blake and Weiss however were merely excited for their friends. They weren't particularly fond of percussion themselves.

"Of course, the return of drumline means the return of our color guard of well."

This piqued both of their interest however. Weiss had to admit, the flashy dancing and the chance to elegantly enthrall an audience certainly appealed to her. Blake was a little more hesitant, but Yang had already crossed the room and thrown an arm around her shoulder, practically begging her to do it.

Blake just rolled her eyes and agreed to audition with a smile. It could be fun after all, and she wanted to be with her friends as much as she could during her senior year.

Ozpin just stepped off the platform, knowing that control of the class had been lost, even from his grip. He smiled apologetically at Glynda, who just sighed, having had more to say but knowing it was a lost cause. Simply walking over to the whiteboard near the front, in bold letters he wrote down a message before leaving to head to his office.

 _Auditions are next Wednesday after school._

He knew they would get the message sooner or later.

"Class dismissed. Clean up the room before you leave." Glynda called out at a reasonable volume, but her voice cut through the chaos like a knife. Everyone had paused their conversations to let out a unanimous. "Yes Ms. Goodwitch." Before returning to what they were doing. They had learned their lesson before about ignoring her.

The clean up that day had been a bit more chaotic for sure, but it had gotten done. Pyrrha finished putting the protective covers over the large timpani drums, rolling them back into the corner. Turning, she saw the the marimbas and xylophones had already been neatly stowed away. What she hadn't expected to see was Jaune sitting on the ground, his head in his hands. She bit her lip, she already knew what he was thinking. She had seen how eager he had been to hear about drumline, but knew how much he doubted himself when it came to percussion.

Gently moving over, she crouched down next to him, just waiting for a moment. She knew he would speak up when he was ready.

"Think I can do it?" He spoke up after a moment, having felt Pyrrha gently lean against him.

Pyrrha hummed for a moment, thinking. "Well I believe you can, but you knew I would say that. It's because I know how hard you work at this. Plus, you're not alone. All of us are with you." She offered, smiling over at him.

Looking up, Jaune just stared at her before a grin crept across his face.

Pyrrha was about to continue when she saw a strange mix of emotions cross his face. "Jaune?"

The blonde looked away from her, his hand's suddenly drumming on his legs nervously. "It's just... been... a while since I was last on a drumline."

Pyrrha froze, alarms going off in her head. "You were in a drumline before?" She asked, confused. She hadn't heard of that before.

Jaune shrugged nervously. "It was just a youth one in my middle school. Mostly for fun, only going to a local competition for fun." He said after a brief pause. "I wanted to be like my grandpa. So it was the closest I could come to being a drummer at the time."

Pyrrha stared at him, not saying anything. It was true she hadn't heard much about his middle school. She knew he hadn't exactly been too popular back then or had too many friends, so he usually only talked about the present. Still, when she had helped him with percussion in the beginning he had never mentioned it before.

Before she could decide if she wanted to press the issue any further, Ruby had popped up, kicking Jaune's shoe.

"You okay?" She asked, tilting her head, obviously concerned.

Jaune just looked up at her, that strange expression still on his face before a smile crept on it. "Yeah! I'm great!" He said, forcing himself to stand up suddenly. Almost solely out of habit, he moved over to the piano.

Immediately people flocked to the piano. Hardly an unusual sight after a class for them. Immediately he began to play a simple rendition of one of the popular songs on the radio.

Yang was leaning over the back of the piano, her sister at her side. Yang knew Jaune to be many things. Clumsy, determined, caring, a bit of a goof, romantically oblivious, but talented was usually not one word she'd use to describe him. But on the piano, he certainly had skill. It wasn't really due to a natural ability, but rather all the Arc children had been given a rule when they were kids to play a musical instrument for at least 3 years, he had explained. Afterwards, if they were unhappy with it they could give it up, no complaints. But his parents insisted the process of learning an instrument was good for both his mental growth, and for forming healthy habits.

Jaune had fallen in love with it, though it certainly always seemed to be a battle to improve. He couldn't admit it, but he loved how his playing would make others smile. It started out with his sisters, many of whom could play as well, but when he played correctly others would laugh. Then his few friends in the past enjoyed it as well. Finally, when he had transferred to beacon, he found it rang true and his first conversation with Pyrrha had been around the piano, even before she had offered to help him. Jaune knew if he could make his friends smile, any burden that came with learning the piano could be shouldered.

As he played, the usual crowd continued to flock around him, some even singing the words. Pyrrha took her usual spot, sitting on the bench next to him, occasionally picking at some notes to harmonize. Blake leaned against the side of the piano as she read, enjoying the atmosphere. Ren and Nora showed up happily, as Nora rested her hands on Jaune's shoulders and leaned against him. Even Weiss had floated around them, hanging out a bit awkwardly until Ruby had pulled her into a conversation.

A wrong note caused the song to crash to a halt as he fumbled for a moment, Yang and Nora snickering at his mistake. Jaune began to be a little flustered until he Pyrrha reassuringly nudge his leg with hers, offering her a warm smile as she started up again, getting back on track.

Yang burst out laughing as she saw Nora standing behind the oblivious duo, her arms out stretched as they hovered on either side of their heads twitching like she just wanted to mash them together. She was mouthing "kiss kiss kiss" silently, until Ren snickered and gently lowered her arms.

Eventually, Yang couldn't sit still anymore and moved over to the drum set in the corner next to the piano, picking up the sticks.

"Play something faster." She ordered Jaune, as she spun her stick impatiently.

Jaune shrugged, before falling back to one of the songs he had down perfectly from years of practice.

"Ooo! This'll be the day! I know this too!" Ruby exclaimed as she vanished suddenly, reappearing a moment later with her saxophone. Soon enough, Ruby, Yang, and Jaune were preforming the song as a trio, while some of the others sang.

Across the room, Ozpin was leaning against the door frame, sipping from his drink with a content smile.

"You would think they would want to be quiet after so long of playing music." Glynda had half-heartedly complained.

"They're just kids having fun. Band is a sort of safe haven for all different kinds of people, they can express themselves here in ways they can't in the rest of the school. This is important to them, and that's why I have a feeling this year's drumline will be something to remember."

Glynda raised an eyebrow. "Your instinct is usually right. Who did you get to be the drumline instructor anyway?"

Ozpin just took a sip from his mug. "One of our old friends."

As the song wound down, some of the band members still loitering about burst out into applause at the impromptu performance.

They continued to chat and laugh, having a good time as they traded expectations and excitement for the upcoming drumline auditions. None of them were aware yet just how crazy the rest of their senior year would be, or how glad they would be to be able to face it together.

XxXxXxXxX

Thank you for reading! :D So far I'm planning on this being my next major series. It's touching home a bit writing this, as I was in band my senior year.

Few important notes. One, there is some terminology from band thrown in here, so I hope it won't be too difficult to read. I'll try to explain any concepts I think are important.

Two, The rules of how things work may differ just a bit compared to actual band and drumline. I'm a bit rusty on details, and I want more freedom to include events I want to so the competitions will run for a longer period of time, with quite a few possible events. I know Indoor percussion tends to be around a 3 to 4 month endeavor but I'm stretching it a bit cause I can.

Third, some elements from the show will be tweaked ever so slightly. I know the Jaune/Weiss conflict in the show was much more tame, and not as dramatic but since this takes place in our world, I'm saying it had ended up a little more dramatic. Part of the benefits of the world of RWBY is that it's pretty easy to bond when you're fighting for your life. In our world in a normal highschool setting, you don't get that level of connection so it would bubble out as typical drama. That said, I'm not going to make it too extreme and I moved them past it more to the relationship they seemed to have in volume 3. I'll explain more into the backstory gradually.

Fourth, I know this is a little clunky. I'm going for a massive story, so I have quite a bit of backstory to set up to explain how everyone grew up. Not going to dump it all in the first few chapters, though Arkos got quite the focus in this one. I will be trying to focus on all 8 characters pretty evenly, though Arkos will likely get the spotlight quite a bit cause I'm me. The writing will get better as I fall into a more natural groove with this story and I can focus more on the events rather than explaining everything that needs to be explained. Put simply though, they're all seniors at a highschool, including Ruby who skipped freshman and sophmore years, due to reasons I'll explain in the future.

I really hope you enjoy this, as I'm looking forward to writing it.


	2. The Auditions

Sorry for the delay! My life got a bit busy. I'll clarify some stuff about this chapter afterwards. Heads up, this chapter is SUPER LONG. Pretty much 2 in one. Enjoy!

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The days between the announcement and the actual auditions had been charged with energy. While many were wholly uninterested, for the select few that it applied to, it was game changing. Suddenly everyone was clambering for the chance to practice on the practice pads after school, bringing gifts to bribe Pyrrha and Yang to teach them how to drum. Yet, Jaune found himself oddly avoided. No one seemed too eager to ask him for advice on the drums, which only served to depress the self-doubting teenager.

Many in the class understood he was the best in the class on the piano. Even Pyrrha gave way on the piano, having focused her skills enough elsewhere that the nuances on the Piano eluded her. The very same nuances that Jaune had hurled himself at over and over again until he learned them, and continued to do so in a desperate pursuit of improvement.

Yet none seemed to consider him worthy of a bribe for help with drumming. It wasn't wholly unexpected, considered he rarely played the drum set or snare in class, opting to leave it to yang, or at times Pyrrha. That didn't mean it wasn't still a little sad to him.

The next Monday after class had ended, Jaune had sulked off to the piano as he saw students approach both Yang and Pyrrha again, bearing gifts. One girl even had chocolate for Pyrrha, which made Jaune smirk slightly. He knew about her weakness when it came to chocolate, it'd probably work.

He rested his hands on the keyboard, mentally running through all the songs he knew how to play. With a defeated sigh he just dropped his head onto the keys, earning an ugly burp from the piano at the poor combination. Nothing seemed fun to play at the moment. He knew he should be practicing as well, but he couldn't muster up the will power too. Plus, a lot of the practice supplies had already been claimed by Drumline hopefuls.

Closing his eyes for a moment, he took a deep breath, inhaling the old musty scent of the piano. He knew he couldn't afford to just mope around all day. It wouldn't be helpful to himself, or anyone. Plus, Pyrrha was right. Making small steps forward, even when it feels like the hardest thing to do in the world, was the only way to make things better. Momentum was key. If he started moving forward, the world would keep him doing so.

Forcing himself to sit up straight, he once again tried to figure out what to play. His eyes glanced over the piano, seeing Pyrrha being cornered by the girl from before who was holding up the box of premiere chocolates. Pyrrha was clearly eyeing them like a hunter eyes it's prey. It seemed like someone would finally be successful.

Jaune sighed, at least happy that Pyrrha would be getting a nice treat out of it. She was nice enough that she probably would have ended up helping them even without bribes. But this way she would be rewarded for her trouble for once.

Not really thinking, he let his feelings decide what song he was going to play. He slowly started to softly play on the piano. He stared at the keys as he played, lost in thought.

After a few moments, he noticed a pair of arms rest on the back of the piano. Noticing the woven bracelet on her wrist, an identical match to the one on his, he knew Pyrrha had come by once again.

"Who are you helping today?" He asked curiously, trying to distract himself from his own thoughts.

"No one, today." Jaune paused playing, looking up at her in surprise. Slowly he started playing again.

"Why not? I thought those chocolates would have worked for sure."

Pyrrha shook her head. "I was already given some last week. I can't afford to keep binging on chocolate. I don't think I can fit more time into the Gym."

Jaune just laughed. "Pyrrha please, you're gorgeous. You don't need to worry about box of chocolates even touching your looks. I know how hard you work in the Gym." He remarked idly, playing for a few more bars before the realization of his words had sunk in for himself. "Uh... I mean." He began to scramble, unknowingly increasing the tempo of the song as he struggled to keep playing despite his mind hitting Mach 2.

Pyrrha turned away from the piano, covering her blushing face with her hand. "Thanks." She had only meant it as an offhand remark. She hadn't seriously been worried about her appearance.

Jaune just slowed down the song to it's normal, somber tempo.

"Are you wishing someone would ask you for help?" Pyrrha gently asked after a moment, sliding onto the bench next to him.

Jaune just sighed, a smile creeping on his face. It was like she could read him like a book. "Yeah, I guess I am. But it makes sense. You and Yang are the better drummers, that's just obvious. Plus you're like an amazing teacher. I know that first hand." He said, flashing Pyrrha her favorite smirk.

Pyrrha pouted ever so slightly as she saw it turn into a sigh and a frown.

"I just wish someone would have asked me, you know?" He muttered as the song began to wind down.

Pyrrha just thought for a moment. "You know if you told them you've done drumline before, they would be clambering all over you. Neither Yang nor I have done it in the past. You have that advantage."

Jaune's eyes widened as he hit a wrong note suddenly. "No!" He said, quickly looking at her. Seeing her confused expression, he let out a sigh. "No, that's not... fair." He muttered, resuming playing the final bit of the song. "I told you, it wasn't much. I don't want to mislead them into thinking they can learn a lot from me." He finished the song, glancing down at the piano. "Maybe it's better for them anyway."

Pyrrha frowned. Her hunch had been correct. She had refused helping the girl earlier because she had been worried about Jaune. He had been off during band class. Besides, Yang was more than eager to accept their bribes and teach a small group.

"Jaune, look at me." She ordered, raising her hand.

Jaune turned his head curiously, but found her finger poking him in the cheek as he turned his head.

He stumbled back a little in surprise, causing Pyrrha to giggle.

Jaune just stared at her, smiling despite himself at the sound of her laugh. He thought for a moment. "I was doing it again, wasn't I?"

Pyrrha just nodded, still smiling. "Yup."

Jaune just sighed. "I'm sorry." He said, offering her a sheepish smile. Over their close friendship, Pyrrha had done wonders for his self esteem, he knew that. Her encouragement meant the world to him, and he would always value her as one of the closest people in his life. She had also helped him realize the downward spirals of negativity he would find himself in. She had helped him see that, even if only sometimes, realizing his own pattern of behavior could help him break it and get back on track. It was true, a smile was infectious. Emotions were a fickle thing, always coming and going. So if you invite in a little positivity, more would find it's way to you.

Grinning, he looked at her. "Thanks for being here for me."  
Pyrrha just hummed happily. "My pleasure." She thought for a moment. "Though, if you want to make it up for me..." She trailed off. She played a single chord on the piano.

Jaune just laughed, as he reached an arm around her shoulder, giving her a side hug before moving his hands back to the keys. "I got it." He said, instantly picking up on what she was asking for.

He began to play one of the other songs he knew. This one he had actually learned for her. She claimed it was her favorite song. After pestering her to find a way to repay her for all her extra lessons a while ago, she had suggested he learn this song. He had been all to eager to comply with the small offer. Though, in hindsight he might have studied it a little _too_ hard. She had been surprised when he showed up to the next session and could already play it for her.

Still, she never seemed to tire of it and it could make her smile so Jaune would play it till the end of days if need be.

"You really love Shine, don't you?"

Pyrrha just grinned. "I do."

She began to play an accompanying part to his playing, one that they had developed over time from the sheer number of times they had been sitting side by side while he played it. Hardly an uncommon sight, yet one of her favorites always.

They continued to play, doing their best to keep on tempo despite the roar of the drums coming from the large practice room off to the side of the band room. Sound proofing it could only do so much in the end.

In the practice room, Yang was quickly drumming, chewing happily on a piece of chocolate. She'd be a liar if she said she wasn't loving all the bribes and attention she was getting. Plus, she was more than willing to go the extra mile to give these students a chance at landing a spot on the drumline. Though, judging by their playing it wasn't too likely. Yang and Pyrrha were a sure spot on the line. She even knew little Jaune would land a spot. Glancing over, she noticed Ruby in the corner of the practice room, matching her perfectly.

Yang couldn't help but grin at her little sister. She would definitely be the dark horse at the auditions. Most just knew her as the hard working saxophone player that had kipped two years, but no one would expect her to be a drummer. Even the others Yang was helping at the moment seemed surprised to see Ruby playing so well.

Yang smirked. "New exercise. We're going to just play a straight drum roll, but I'm going to gradually increase. Drop out when you can't keep up anymore, but don't be shy about it. It's better to stop playing than to tank the the entire group.

Getting their confirmation, Yang began to do a roll ever so slowly. She played each note with a tight grip on the stick, waiting for everyone to sync up before she slowly began speeding up. Still gripping the sticks tightly, she began to play faster and faster, reaching a pace that sounded much more like a drum roll. "Start using the bounce of the pad to work for you." She called out over the roar of sticks on practice pads.

Loosening her grip, Yang switched to focusing on holding the stick with two fingers, using a fulcrum to allow the natural recoil of the rubber to bounce the stick back up after she let it fall. Now that she allowed the drum to do it's own share of the work, she increased the pace faster and faster.

After a little while, some of the students had to drop out. They were still uncomfortable with relying on the drum to do the work, and couldn't keep up with strict controlled movements.

"Now we're really getting serious." Yang announced as she kicked it up once again.

The rest of the students were quick to fall behind, stopping with a satisfied smile. The last three had made it pretty far, and Yang figured they were fast enough for the bare minimum at least.

However, they weren't all done. Yang raised an eyebrow, seeing Ruby staring at her drum pad intently, but still managing to play on tempo. Yang knew she had been getting lessons from their uncle when he visited, but she was doing surprisingly well.

"Keep up sis." She barked as she really began to push herself. Faster and faster, but Ruby wouldn't back down.

Eventually though Yang began to falter. She couldn't keep up a clean roll at that fast a pace, and she stopped. Sure enough though, Ruby was still able to roll. She kept it up for another minute, before she let out a defeated sigh and ended, her own tempo starting to go haywire.

Yang glared at her sister, pulling out a metronome. Tapping it a few times, she held it up to her ear to confirm her theory. Pointing her drumstick at her accusingly, she snapped. "How come you can do a clean drum roll at 220 BPM?"

Ruby shied away, touching the tips of her fingers together. "I like playing fast. Uncle kept giving me tips on speeding up."

Just letting out a sigh, Yang ran a hand through her hair. She wasn't too surprised honestly. She had seen Ruby diligently practicing every night since the announcement. Getting an idea, a dangerous smirk crossed her face.

"Uh Yang?" Ruby asked nervously, suddenly wanting to leave.

"Paradiddles." Yang deadpanned.

"What?" Ruby asked, tilting her head.

"Yeah, I'm sorry. What are those?" One of the other students asked curiously.

Choking back a evil laugh, Yang smiled. "Just a standard drum practice. You see, in drumline which hand you use is important. Normal rolls are left right left right left right, correct? Paradiddles are a little different. The pattern is right left right right, left right left left and repeat." She explained, amused by the horrified expressions on her student's faces.

"Are you serious?"

"Yup." Yang said, popping the 'p'. To drive the point home, she began to do paradiddles at a reasonable pace. They all watched in a sick combination of horror and fascination.

"Now it's your turn." She barked the order, looking at them with an amused expression. Sure, the drumline instructor would probably be a better choice for teach them the drill, but Yang wanted to save some face after losing in a drum roll on a snare to her sister.

Their attempts were okay for a beginner. Hardly clean enough to even practice normally, but for the most part they seemed to be able to play the right pattern.

It wasn't like Yang had no sympathy. She remembered how annoying they had been when she had first seriously trying to learn to play the drums. Even now, she wasn't a fan of them. Most sane people weren't. But they were an important skill to learn, and the talent gained was even useful when transferred to the drum set.

"Now we'll do the same exercise with paradiddles. Drop out when it's too fast." She said, glaring at her sister.

To give Yang some credit, she had started off at a snail's pace. She wasn't trying to completely wreck their confidence after all. No, she'd leave that to the drumline instructor. Everyone was at least able to keep up with her for the first few bars. Slowly but surely, she began to creep a little faster. It hadn't taken too much longer for the worst of the group to drop out. One by one, the remaining students fell. Soon enough again, it was only Yang and Ruby. Ruby, however, seemed to be fairing far worse than last time.

Not wanting to see her sister too much, Yang smirked. "Okay. We're kicking it up a notch." Focusing, she jumped the tempo up a few clicks quickly as she drew on her years of practice. Ruby stopped almost immediately, throwing her arms up in defeat. "I get it! I lose!"

Yang snickered. "That's right."

Ruby just pouted. "Show off! Now get back to the lessons!"

Just laughing, Yang just nodded. "Okay okay. Now, back to the basics. Here's what we're doing. 2 bars of quarters, eighths, sixteenths, then back down."

Earning a chorus of affirmatives, Yang started counting it off.

Outside the room Weiss just rolled her eyes. "People get the idea that Yang can help them land a spot, and suddenly everyone is bringing gifts to bribe her."

Blake rolled her eyes. "If you were in her position, would you be rejecting their gifts?"

Scoffing, Weiss looked at her. "I'd tell them to do better with their offerings."

Just staring at Weiss, Blake wasn't sure how to respond.

"I'm joking!" Weiss said exasperated. She faltered for a moment. "I really am. People don't need to bring me stuff to talk to me." Her voice trailed off as she frowned.

Blake just smiled, gently resting a hand on Weiss's shoulder. "I know. Don't worry."

Weiss just flashed her a grateful smile. Her dad had found himself very successful in the logging industry, and as such Weiss had grown up in a life of luxury. But the older she got, the more she came to dislike the tense atmosphere in her household. The more she learned about her father's business, the more she had grown to detest it. The seedy businessmen that she would meet, the conversations in hushed whispers she would overhear. The blatant disregard for the rules, treating them as a mere annoyance. Weiss originally had thought nothing wrong, merely seeing her father's point of view on life. The world was a resource to be used, and unused resources, like useless people, were a waste of time. A lesson that had been ingrained deeply within her.

However, as she got older an opportunity presented itself. Her sister, Winter, was living away from home, rising up the ranks in a new green energy company. An offshoot of the Schnee Logging Company that was focusing more on sustainable renewable energy. Under the guise of learning more about the business from her sister first hand, her dad agreed to let her stay with Winter and even caved to her request to attend a normal high school, rather than another private school at her sister's suggestion.

One of the first people she had met when she transferred her sophomore year was Blake. Blake had already met Yang and Ruby, and Weiss had been paired up with Ruby for a term long group project in one of her classes. The fact that a student two years younger than her was in the same math class as her only served to darken her mood back then.

One day during a work session at the Xiao Long household, Yang had invited Blake over and the two had met. That was when Blake had found out about her family, and the resulting fight had been explosive.

It turned out Blake's family had always been very environmentally friendly. For years they had been involved in animal husbandry, relying on large amounts of land to raise their livestock in a more natural way. However, as land was obtained and clear cut, more and more land had been appropriated to make way for logging, and the selling of the land to companies. Blake's family had been some of the early victims of the loss of their land. Then they had moved inland, getting involved in politics to help combat the invasive logging industry, while still doing local active work with wildlife preservation foundations.

Though she found it difficult to voice directly, Weiss had actually been impressed when she heard that Blake volunteered every summer at a nearby wildlife rescue center. How could she voice her praise, when her family was part of the reason so many animals were losing their home?

Their argument had ended the study session, ending with Blake running out of the house, Yang chasing after her. Things had remained tense between them, until one day they had both ended up at the Xiao Long household again.

All their feelings had come out, and after a shouting match, they had finally understood each other. Their frustrations and prejudices falling aside as they honestly listened to each other. Since then they had only grown closer and closer over the years.

Surprisingly, Blake had been the one to talk her down during the great Schnee-Arc fiasco. Reminding her of the problems that came with bringing your own assumptions to the situation and being unwilling to speak calmly with and listen to someone else.

After Yang's urging, Blake had learned, Pyrrha had been the one to really help Jaune clear up his misunderstandings, to understand that even without the unfair claims Weiss was making about his intentions that she wasn't interested in him. Even without her claims of accusing him of just being after her money, that she didn't see him that way. It had been a bit of a challenge to help him understand that her rejection wasn't just because he was screwing it up, or failing on his end. That no matter how hard he tried, they just weren't meant to be.

That winter ball certainly had been an awkward one, the explosion between Jaune and Weiss had happened just days before the event when he had approached her with his last attempt at asking her. But they had had an honest heart to heart.

Jaune had explained that he honestly thought that he was just screwing up his approach, and that if he could do it right for once, she would take him seriously. He apologized for not getting the hint earlier, trying to get her to understand he didn't think she needed to say yes, but had just wanted her to treat him seriously. But he confessed he saw now he really should have stopped earlier, though both Yang and Pyrrha had stepped up to apologize and say they had encouraged him during his attempts, and that part of his persistence was due to their words.

Weiss also had forced out a small apology. She apologized for accusing him of just being after her family's money, and all the harsh words she had said during her final rejection. She then took the opportunity to calmly and honestly explain that she really wasn't interested in him that way, and that she really did want him to stop. She had been tempted to throw him a hint about Pyrrha, who even Weiss had discovered her feelings by then, but she withheld herself.

Jaune had gotten the message, then after a rather awkward handshake, they were able to move past it and become friends. Ruby and Nora had insisted that the entire group of friends attended the dance together as friends, since none of them had procured a date during the chaos.

Weiss and Blake both would admit that that dance had been some of their favorite memories. It had really been the first time they had all been able to come together as a group of friends and enjoy the night. None of them would certainly ever be able to forget seeing Jaune show up in a dress halfway through the dance, citing a promise he had apparently made to Pyrrha about her not finding a date. Weiss, Blake, and Yang had all face-palmed when he had explained the reason, feeling a mix of sympathy for their red-headed friend being in love with someone so oblivious to the reason she didn't find a date, and happiness that her target of affections had cared for her so much to endure the teasing he had suffered from wearing the dress.

Though, Pyrrha had made certain to ease his mind and explain how touched she had felt afterwards, and after one particularly terrifying, yet eerily polite conversation, no one dared to tease Jaune about it in front of her again. That one junior still couldn't look Pyrrha in the eye.

Now though, almost a year later, they had all grown closer. Even though Weiss and Blake weren't directly in drumline, they certainly shared the excitement in the air at the thought of the approaching auditions. As they discussed the try outs, they had offered polite waves to Ren and Nora when they had entered the band room again.

"Delivery~" Nora had called out in a sing song voice, slamming open the door with both hands as she balanced a bag on her head.

Ren once again caught the door, as he followed behind her, holding a few bags himself. Moving to the corner of the room, they began to set out the various donuts, drinks, and chips they had purchased.

The group had gotten permission from Ozpin to stay later in the room, to be able to get in some extra practice. Initially he had been hesitant, but after the promise of both Weiss and Pyrrha that the room would remain in perfect condition, he found no reason to doubt the word of his two most trustworthy students.

A long night of practice meant they needed refreshments of course! Which Nora had volunteered herself and Ren to get.

Blake and Weiss moved over to get some snacks, seeing Jaune and Pyrrha also being lured over by the promise of food. Nora cheerfully hummed as she walked across the band room holding a plastic tray. Stopping in front of the door to the practice room, she merely held it up to the window before stepping back. A minute later the door exploded open as Ruby appeared, already reaching for the cookies.

Yang had just sighed, packing up her sticks and practice pad before giving some last minute pointers to the other students she had helped out. It seemed practice would be over for a while. At least while they had snacks before they started up again.

The group of 8 was huddled in the corner before long, happily chatting and munching on snacks after they had all passed Ren and Nora their fair share of money to help pay for the snacks. There was a sort of unspoken rule when it came to snacks. You paid when you could, and your friends covered for you when you couldn't. It was obvious that Weiss, Pyrrha, and surprisingly Blake were well off enough to often chip in. Ren and Nora on the other hand occasionally had to be covered, knowing that their foster parents weren't exactly well off. No one minded though, no one in the group was going to let money come between them. That was exactly the reason Weiss had learned to love her group of friends so much in the first place.

Slowly the rest of the students began to trickle out of the band room as time passed, pretty much leaving it alone for the 8 friends to get some serious practice in.

And practice they did. Yang was a drill sergeant, Pyrrha carefully critiqued everyone's form. Ruby and Nora kept morale up, while Jaune and Ren worked with such focus that the other's knew they couldn't slack off compared to them. They had ended up staying late that night, a little longer than they had initially promised Mr. Ozpin, but they had kept their promise. The room was spotless when he had arrived the next morning.

Despite all the fun they had practicing together for the auditions, when the actual auditions rolled around, many of them were a bundle of nerves.

Ruby was in one corner of the room, doing a roll on the practice pad so fast Yang was mildly concerned she wouldn't be able to play slow enough for the audition. Yang herself was rather calm, feeling confident in her ability, and figured staying positive would help her friends hold off their nerves. Weiss and Blake were in the other side of the room with some other girls. They had all changed into sweats, as they began stretching. They still hadn't announced either the guest drumline instructor or the choreographer for the color guard, so they had no idea what to expect.

Pyrrha and Jaune were both straddling the piano bench, sharing a practice pad as they ran through one the routines over and over again, Pyrrha gently but firmly barking orders, keeping them busy and focused. Pyrrha knew Jaune well, if he had time to just think he would psyche himself out which could affect his playing at the audition. So she was determined to keep them busy and warmed up until it was time to begin. Not to mention she preferred practicing before an audition herself as well, never one to rest on her laurels. So they would drill until the last moment.

Perhaps the most surprisingly was Ren and Nora, who were sharing their own practice pad as they practiced their own, slightly more unique routine. Ren diligently practicing was never a surprise, but even Nora was patiently following along. Though she still support her trademark grin as she inched the tempo ever slightly faster.

Soon enough, Ozpin walked out and stood on the slightly elevated conductor's platform. "Auditions will now begin."

The noise in the band room ground a halt, save from the clattering of Jaune's drumstick as it collided against his wall when he has lost his grip from the shock.

"Are you the instructor?" Yang asked curiously, still not seeing anyone else.

Ozpin chuckled. "No, I'm afraid not. I found an old friend who is a rather expert in the field. I believe you know him actually." Ozpin said with a playful smirk. "Would you come in?" He called out to someone in his office.

Casually a rather tall man strolled out from the office, taking a swig from a flask.

"We finally ready to start this, Oz?" He drawled out, looking over the class.

"Uncle?" Ruby shouted out, standing up suddenly. A moment later she had launched herself across the class, slamming into his waist and wrapping him up in a tight hug. "It's been so long!"

Qrow just smiled, messing up her hair. "Hey kid."

"You're our instructor?" Yang asked surprised. "I thought you were just a drummer for some band. Can you properly teach us?" She asked curiously.

Qrow just raised an eyebrow. "You questioning me, firecracker? I'll have you know that back in my day, I marched in drumline in one of the top national teams."

Yang snickered. "I didn't know dinosaurs had drumlines."

Some snickers erupted from the class.

"Just for that, you're not on the line." He offered.

"That's not fair! You're going to reject your adorable niece?"

"Nah, Ruby is safe." He replied, messing with your hair again.

"That's not what I meant!" Yang replied angrily. "We're family!"

"Nepotism is bad. Can't show favorites." He said with a shrug.

Yang just stomped her way over, glaring at him for a moment. Jaune just leaned over next to Pyrrha. "She's not going to... hit him, right?" He asked, a little worried.

"Yang wouldn't... I think." Pyrrha offered, a little concerned herself.

Qrow and Yang just glared at each other for a moment, before Yang burst out into a grin and pulled him into a tight hug. "I missed you!"

Qrow just grinned, returning the hug quickly. "I missed you too, kid."

A few students in the class let out a sigh of relief.

Ozpin just chuckled. "Yes, now that the surprise is out of the way, I'll be handing the reigns over to him. Qrow will be in charge of drumline, what he says goes. As for color guard, we have a visiting teacher as well.

Everyone turned to the other door where Ozpin had gestured. "She has graciously volunteered her time, despite also helping out at another school. I ask you welcome her and treat her with respect." He introduced her.

Qrow leaned over to Yang. "He didn't give me that pomp and circumstance."

Just shrugging, yang replied. "You didn't deserve it."

"Smart ass." Qrow quipped proudly.

The door open and in walked another woman.

"Winter?!" Weiss shrieked, before covering her mouth.

"Hello sister."

Weiss stood up in shock. "You're our color guard instructor? Why didn't you tell me?" Weiss wondered, surprised. She was staying with her sister at the moment, how could she not know something like this?

Winter just smiled. "I thought it might be a fun surprise. Besides, it wasn't official until recently. Ozpin had approached me, but I had to see that things would be in order with work, and my volunteering at Atlas High as well. But, both I and Ironwood owe Ozpin a favor so here I am." She offered in explanation.

The formal answer hung in the air for a moment, before a small smile crept on her face. "Besides, I can't let my sister's color guard be lead by anyone but the best, now can I?"

Weiss just grinned, glancing over at Blake.

Blake could practically see how excited Weiss was, despite her best attempts at remaining composed. Ruby, Blake, and Yang all were well aware of how much Weiss looked up to her sister. And, despite all of the airs she put up, how much she longed for the chance to be closer to her sister. Having her coach the color guard must be like a dream come true. Blake just put a hand on Weiss's shoulder, smiling at her.

Winter's smile dropped though as she turned to Qrow. "Though, Ozpin neglected to inform me that you would be the instructor for the drumline." She quipped, her eyes narrowing.

Qrow just rolled his eyes. "I'm surprised you think you can instruct them. It's hard to teach with a stick so far up your a-"

"Enough!" Ozpin said suddenly, cutting the pair off. He had expected their bickering, and had a feeling it would be a long season. Still, they were both his first choice for instructors, so they would have to learn to get along.

Glynda just rolled her eyes. Once again, she had no idea what Ozpin was thinking putting them together. They had been at odds with each other ever since they had been her underclassmen.

"Now then, Winter will take the color guard to the Gym for auditions. Qrow will handle the drumline auditions here."

Winter nodded. Clapping her hands once. "Follow me. We will stretch there and begin the auditions."

She ordered, holding her hands behind her back as she began to walk away.

Nervously, Weiss shared a look with Blake. It was clear that Weiss's relation Winter would be doing her no favors today. Winter was taking this seriously, which was fantastic for the show but awful for the students. Waving their goodbyes to their friends, Weiss and Blake followed with the rest of the color guard hopefuls towards the gym.

Ozpin glanced over at Glynda. "Would you mind going to watch those auditions? I'll observe here."

Glynda nodded. "Very well." She offered, before following the group towards the Gym. Truth be told, she found Winter more pleasant to be around than Qrow.

Qrow took another swig from his flask before closing the lid. "Now then..."

Yang raised an eyebrow. "Is that booze? On campus?"

Qrow shook his head as he picked up a pair of drumsticks. "Nah. Oz here wouldn't let me. It's just diet coke. Still, a flask is more convenient than a water bottle." He answered as he moved over to inspect the drums that had been set out. "First things first. We-"

The doors to the band room burst open as two girls came running in, out of breath.

"Did we miss it?" brunette asked between pants. "I told you it was today!"

Ozpin just smiled. "You're right on time Velvet, I'm glad you could join us." He thought for a moment, glancing at her partner. "Though, Coco you're here for Color Guard, right? Winter just took them to the gym. I would hurry if I were you, I'm afraid she doesn't respond well to tardiness."

Coco nodded. "Good luck!" She told velvet, slapping her on the butt as she ran past to catch up with the rest of the group.

Velvet just shrunk into herself, quickly moving towards the back of the room to try avoid drawing any more attention to herself than she already had.

Qrow just stared at them. "Any more dramatic interruptions? Or can we get this show started."

Velvet just shrunk more, sliding next to Ruby.

Ozpin motioned for him to begin.

"So... Oz here tells me that we have a few different level of drummers here. Let's start with the basics. Raise your hand if you know the three different types of drums in our line."

Most of the hands were raised in the room, thanks to the explanations Pyrrha and Yang had given most of the hopefuls.

"Good. You, Pyrrha, right? Yeah, Ruby has told me about you. You're good right? Tell us what the different types are." He said, crossing his arms as he looked at her in a challenging manner.

Pyrrha nodded, stepping forward.

She indicated to the five large drums that grew from small to massive, all with a harness that would have them facing sideways off the chest of the percussionist. "These are the bass drums. They typically split up a single rhythm between all five players, relying on complicated coordination, and a strong sense of teamwork in order to produce the complicated rhythms. Heavily reliant on cohesion in the group in order to function." She offered, ready to move on to the next one.

Qrow waved her off however. "Correct. But a little lengthy. Let's see... Yang. You tell us about these." He said, motioning to the four complicated connected different sets of drums.

Yang hopped up off her chair, moving over. "Those are the quads. Each tom has a different tone, letting them play similar patterns to the bass drums, but by themselves and a lot higher of notes." She explained. After a moment of thought she added "Like a drum set, without the snare."

Qrow nodded. "Good. Now then... let's see. You, Blondie. Johnny right?"

Jaune stood up nervously. "It's Jaune, sir."

"Right. Jaune, it's obvious but what are these?"

He asked, motioning to the last set of drums and harnesses.

"Those are the snares. They're just one drum, but they have the most complicated parts. Players need to be really good, and stay on time or it's obvious how off you'll sound." He answered a bit nervously.

Qrow however, nodded finding the answer satisfying. "Good."

"Now then..." He started out, reaching down and pulling the snare harness over his head. Noticing the bag hanging off the side was empty he frowned. "Sticks?"

Nervously a first year approached him, offering him a set of drum sticks.

"That's not what I need, kid." He said, looking around the room.

The first year just stared at the sticks in confusion. "But these are drumsticks..."

"Yeah, but those are set sticks. What I need are..."

"These." Jaune said, holding out a pair of drumline sticks to him.

Qrow nodded. "Thanks. Now see? These sticks are much larger than drum set sticks. Heavier too, meaning your hands will be tired for a while while getting used to them. But they let you make the noise required to fill an auditorium much easier."

As if to accent his point, he played a single note on the snare, causing most of the people in attendance to flinch. In the band room, it was _LOUD._ It echoed, and seemed to drown out any thoughts in your head. "Normally we'll practice in the Gym, or Cafeteria since these bad boys are meant to fill an auditorium. A cramped little band room isn't the best place to here the sound properly. See?"

To prove his point, she started doing a simple roll.

Some of the first years covered their ears. It was much louder than they had expected, and that was just one drum.

The percussion section just watched him intently.

"That's so fast!" One of the younger students said in awe.

Smirking, Qrow stopped his roll. "That's nothing. But, snare drumming for drumline isn't just about playing quickly. In fact, none of drumline is _just_ about playing nicely. It's all a performance. Just because there's the little flowery color guard dancing around us doesn't me don't have to pull our own weight. What separates the drummers from the performers is how cool you guys look."

Suddenly, he started into a complicated pattern, alternating sticking, occasionally flaring up with large strokes. Students started murmuring in awe, seeing it close up for the first time. Then, kicking it up a notch he began to spin a hand as he drummed, flipping his hand over to play a beat with the back of his stick before flipping it back over for the next beat. Finally, he finished his lick, slamming his stick sideways on the drum, hit it the bottom of the stick with the other causing it to flip in the air, before he caughtt it, and played one final lick to end his little performance.

Some of the people in the room immediately started applauding, including Ruby. Yang just rolled her eyes. "Show-off."

Ozpin just gave Qrow a pointed look.

Rubbing the back of his neck, Qrow looked around. "Uh, right. That's still a few steps away. First things first, the actual auditions. Now then, who has actual history on a drumline?"

Everyone looked around, but no one raised there hand. After a moment, Pyrrha nudged Jaune's side, giving him a careful look.

Jaune's hand slowly crept upwards.

Ozpin raised an eyebrow at him, but said nothing.

"Only two of you?"

Jaune paused, surprised that someone else was claiming experience. Looking around, he saw velvet raising her hand, yet was no more confident than he was.

"You two, come up here."

Slowly Jaune and Velvet made their way to the front, practically shaking from all the eyes on them.

Turning to velvet first, Qrow looked at her. "Right, I think I remember Oz mentioning you would probably be showing up again. You were on it two years ago, right? Snare I think he said. Good. Hop on one." He said, motioning to Velvet who only nodded and quickly moved over, pulling on a snare.

Jaune had forgotten that she had played snare drum. Velvet and Coco were in the Orchestra class, that actually had violins and other stringed instruments. Jaune had only talked to them occasionally, but he vaguely remembered hearing that velvet did percussion.

"So, Jaune. What experience do you have exactly?" Qrow asked, raising an eyebrow.

Jaune looked to the side. "Not much. In... in middle school. I tri... I was in a small drumline. Only went to a local performance once."

Qrow just stared at him. "What did you play?"

"S-Snare."

"Go put on one." He said, glancing over at Oz after ordering Jaune.

Ozpin merely stood up and walked back into his office, not saying a word.

Standing next to each other, Velvet and Jaune both felt extremely under pressure from all the eyes on them.

Reaching into a folder, Qrow pulled out a sheet of music, placing it on the stand between them. "We'll start simple. Play this exercise. On my count." He said, as he began to hit a tempo on his snare.

It was a simple routine, that switch from half notes, to quarters, to eighths, to sixteenths, doubling it's pace every two bars before winding back down.

Nodding, Qrow smiled slightly. "Not bad, but that was hardly drumline music. Do the next one, and pay attention to the sticking."

The second exercise was much more complicated, involving still relatively simple rhythms, but a complicated alternating sticking pattern. He counted it off again, but they had only made it a few bars before they both stopped playing, completely out of time.

Qrow sighed, looking between them. "You're the experienced ones? Let's try this one more time, a little slower."

Both Jaune and velvet swallowed nervously, before nodding. At the slower tempo they managed to do a little better, but both of them were getting tripped up on the sticking.

Qrow cut them off again, sighing and dropping his head in his hand. "Right, this is gonna be difficult."

After a moment, he stared at the both of them intently. His gazed focused on velvet. "I heard about you. You... don't read music that well do you?"

Velvet shook her head. "I'm afraid I'm bad at it. I'm much better... when I can see it."

Qrow just thought for a moment, before moving the music stand and standing in front of her. "Copy after me. I'll do it twice, then you join me for the next two." Counting it off, he began to play the exercise in front of her.

Jaune awkwardly stood off to the side, staring at the ground. Cautiously he glanced over at Pyrrha, who just offered him an encouraging smile.

Velvet stared intently at Qrow, and after he repeated the pattern she joined in.

Raising an eyebrow, Qrow was impressed. It was perfect. Curious, he tried a more difficult pattern but found her mimicking him perfectly again. He pushed her harder and harder, stepping up the routine each time. This went for a few times, until he managed to include a stick trick that tripped her up and her stick came clattering to the tiled floor.

Nervously, Velvet scrambled to pick it up.

Qrow just shook his head. "Kids these days. There's always one or two like you. Can't read the music worth a damn, but you can copy after just seeing someone preform it once." Satisfied he had solved the puzzle of velvet, he moved on to Jaune. "Same thing."

He tried playing in front of Jaune, but Jaune still seemed to get tripped up. He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Maybe snare isn't the best for you. Perhaps bass drum? Or pit is always an option..."

Pyrrha a fist clench around her heart as she saw Jaune's expression. She could practically see him falling apart on the inside. She knew how much this meant to him, and he was about to blow it.

Jaune opened his mouth, struggling to come up with something to say.

"Wait!" Pyrrha burst out suddenly.

Everyone turned to the red head that was now standing.

"Something to add, Red?" Qrow asked.

Pyrrha quickly made her way to the front. Speaking quietly so only the group around them could hear, she glanced at Jaune. "Jaune, you need to relax. I've seen you play much more complicated parts than this."

Jaune just stared at her. "Pyrrha..."

She turned to Qrow, determined. "Can I try it with him? Just once?"

Narrowing his eyes, Qrow regarded her carefully. Turning, he called out. "Yang, get up here. Stand across from Velvet."

"Kay~" The blonde called out as she went up there, pulling on a snare, while Qrow handed Pyrrha his.

Soon all four were standing in front of Qrow, who fished through his folder. "Here. Play this. Take a moment to look it over carefully. Yang, you know this so show Velvet the pattern quietly."

Yang grabbed the cloth Qrow had offered her and placed in on her drum so she could show Velvet the pattern without making a lot of noise.

Jaune studied the pattern intently, feeling the pressure creeping up on him.

"We got this." Pyrrha said softly, looking at him. "It's just like our normal practice."

Jaune nodded. "I can do this. We can do this."

Qrow stepped up, beginning to count off on his music stand.

Ozpin walked back in, a small smile on his face as he saw the four students playing the piece. It was a little more complicated from before, but they were managing. Yang was a little too fast, and Velvet lagged ever so slightly. Pyrrha was right on point, and Jaune was stumbling a bit but keeping it together.

They finished the short piece, all letting out a deep breath.

Qrow nodded approvingly. "Well, that was certainly better. Final test. Watch me carefully. We'll keep the rhythm a simple 16th note roll. Every bar move from one position to the next." He explained. He began to play a roll as he stood there, after a bar he raised his right foot up his calf a little, the next bar he extended it outwards, the next bar he brought it back in, until the final bar he placed it back on the ground. He repeated the pattern with the other foot.

Finishing up, he stared at them intently. "Moving and playing is an important part of drumline, depending on our choreography, we could be dancing on the stage. We will practice this, but for now do you best to separate your drumming from your body."

Counting it off, he watched them all carefully. Yang had no issues, having already attempted the exercise before. Velvet had already done it, and also was finding her balance just fine. Pyrrha was just a little bit shakey, never having drummed while moving, but her superior sense of balance helped her calm. Surprisingly, Jaune also seemed to be managing decently. He knew this could be a possible test, and had practiced on his own. He had mentioned it to Pyrrha before, but knew the most important thing they could have practiced together was actual drumming versus balancing.

The finished the exercise with only a few stumbles from the group and Qrow smiled approvingly.

Yang just grinned at Velvet, while Pyrrha was beaming at Jaune. Jaune himself was still a little wide-eyed with panic. "I can do better. I promise. I just need-"

Qrow cut him off. "You did fine. Though if you do get a spot, we're going to need to work on your performance anxiety. We're just standing still, playing in a room. Out there you'll be moving across a floor in front of a crowd. Do you think you can do it?" He asked, staring at him intently.

"I can!" Burst out, staring at Qrow with a look of determination. He wasn't going to pass up on this opportunity.

Qrow just smirked. The kid had spunk at least. "Well nothing is guaranteed yet. We still have to give everyone else a chance. Yang, Velvet, Jaune, Pyrrha, take a seat. Anyone else who wants to have a chance at playing snare come on up."

Immediately Ruby had rushed forward, taking the snare from her sister as a few other nervous students walked up. Pyrrha and Jaune both helped get the snare settled on them as they moved back to their seat. Jaune dropped his head into his hands as Pyrrha reassuringly rubbed his back. It was out of their hands now.  
The rest of the snare auditions had certainly been less dramatic. Ruby had excelled, though she was still pushing the tempo too much. Other students did their best, but after a certain point they completely fell apart.

Satisfied, Qrow made a few marks in his folder. "Now, onto the Quads. Since no one mentioned experience on them, first come first serve. We have four here, so come on up. Don't worry, everyone will get a chance."

Nora quickly rushed up, dragging Ren behind her.

"Now these are a bit heavy and awkward to use. You'll want to lean forward but keep your back stra-"

Qrow trailed off as he saw Nora effortlessly lift one and put it on, dancing around a bit. "This is lighter than I thought!"

Ren stood next to her, a bit stiffer. He stretched his back, trying to get used to the weight, ignoring the fact the drums were too far down his body.

"The harnesses aren't adjusted to you yet, so make do. If you get a spot, we'll fit them to you but it will take too long for everyone to be fitted."

Ren nodded. "Not a problem."

Looking at them curiously, Qrow raised an eyebrow while helping one of the other students get in the harness. "You two didn't audition for snare. Why are you trying out just for quads?"

"We've been practicing specifically for Quads, with multiple practice pads. We wanted to be clear on what we chose, and practice the most efficient way. We saw no need to audition for snare." Ren explained calmly.

"Plus one drum is way too boring! 5 though? That's so much more fun! There's so much more to do!" Nora added happily.

Qrow just shrugged. She wasn't exactly wrong. Quads certainly were a performance all on their own, arguably even more so than the snare.

"Now, each line in this music represents on of the drums. Here." He started off, showing them which drum was which line in the music. "Now, you all can read, correct? Just play the basic pattern. We'll start slow."

He counted them off, surprised to see Nora and Ren perfectly on time, moving from drum to drum effortlessly. The other two were a bit rougher, but still managing to hold on.

"Let's try something harder then." Showing them another piece, he stepped back, counting off for them again after they had a moment to look it over.

Ren was preforming it perfectly adequately, while Nora was playing it a little faster than he was tapping. The other two managed to keep up barely.

He ran them through the movement exercises, but Ren and Nora still held their ground.

Qrow nodded, looking at them curiously. "Why are you two so good at this?"

"Practice." Ren offered.

"Cause it's fun!" Nora added happily.

Qrow just stared at Nora. "Right." Turning to the rest of the group he took another swig from his flask. "Who's next? Let's keep this moving." He ordered as students began to cycle out.

Ren and Nora offered Jaune and Pyrrha high fives as they moved back to sit next to them, all watching the rest of the auditions eagerly.

They were all confident that they had preformed their best, so they chose to opt out of the bass drum auditions as Qrow did his best to try and get some semblance of unity between the newcomers. Relying on a slow tempo, heavy marching, and a simple pattern he managed to actually get a few decent runs going. Some more time passed as he called up various combination of students to test them. Unsurprisingly Pyrrha, Yang, Ren, and Velvet were in all the combinations, with Nora, Ruby, and Jaune both moving up and down as he debated who to put in.

"Take five." He ordered as he vanished into the back office with Qrow as they began to discuss the future line.

Yang and Ruby were grinning, feeling confident that they had secured their spot. Nora was chipper as always, having faith in the strange luck that seemed to follow her around, while Ren was content letting the chips fall where they may. Velvet had a feeling she landed a spot, but was still feeling nervous all the same.

Pyrrha knew she had preformed adequately, and based off her previous experience with competitions and auditions, she was pretty sure she had landed a spot as well. Though, at the moment her concern was for her friend. Personally, she felt Jaune could do it. He had really pulled it together, and she could already foresee the amount of work he would put into it. He may be a bit of a slower start than others, but he could make it far. She just hoped that Qrow had the same opinion.

"If you don't make it, there's always Pit you know!" Ruby offered, attempting to cheer up her friend. "You'll practically run the pit!" Yang offered.

It was true. While "The Pit" was the group that often housed aspiring percussionists who didn't make the cut for drumline, it certainly wasn't just a reject group. In fact, many actually preferred the pit over the line. All the mallet instruments, piano, and auxiliary percussion was housed there, and they stood on the front of the stage, playing the melody to whatever piece they preformed. It was certainly an important role that came with its own challenges and enjoyments.

"Thanks guys. I'm sure I'll have fun there. Besides, we'll still be together for some of the practices right?"

"Don't sound so defeated!" Nora declared, pointing at him as she posed on a chair. "The battles not over yet!"

Giggling, Pyrrha nodded. "I agree. We don't know how the line will look. Let's just hope for the best."

Qrow and Ozpin emerged a little while later. Jaune could have sworn he saw Qrow giving him a look and he hoped it was a positive one.

"Now then, we'll announce the results. Two things to say first. One, Pit auditions and try outs will be held on Friday. Please do not feel too discouraged if you don't make the line. The pit is equally important, and there are many spots in there that you can find to grow and practice for future attempts.

Second, is that this line-up will be tentative. After the first practice we can still make changes as needed in order to find the best fit. However, I feel confident with our selection. Now then, let's start with the snares." Ozpin explained.

Everyone perked up, suddenly very interested. Jaune could feel his heartbeat hammering in his chest. This was the moment that would decide the course of the rest of his senior year. He knew it immediately.

"We have 7 spots open. Let's see..." Qrow started off, looking at his list once again.

"Pyrrha Nikos."

Pyrrha let out a sigh of relief. She had confidence in her abilities, but it was still a relief. Now her thoughts turned solely towards her friends.

"Yang Xiao Long."

Grinning, Yang leaned back in her chair. She knew her uncle would put her on the line, especially with her experience.

"Velvet Scarletania."

Velvet just smiled, glad she was able to make it on the line. She gave a quick high five to Ruby before returning smiles to the rest of her friends.

"Tyler Glacias."

The boy looked up in the back of the classroom in surprise, before leaning over as he let out a massive sigh of relief. He seemed to have been as nervous as Jaune had been.

"Ashelyn Ignis."

The girl just grinned, rubbing her boyfriend's back as he leaned over. They had both made it on the line, they were relieved. They certainly had practiced enough.

"Ruby Rose." Ruby let out a small cheer, before covering her mouth with her hand. She turned to Yang, but was already wrapped up in a tight bear-hug.

"Ohhh I'm so proud of you!" Yang squealed out, hugging her sister. She was so glad she could share this experience with her.

Qrow paused for a moment as he stared at the list intently.

Everyone's eyes shifted over to Jaune. His shoulders had slumped more and more with each name read, feeling his chances growing ever more dashed. He tried to resolve himself. Turning to Pyrrha, he offered a meek smile.

"I'll make sure to do my best in the pit, or at least visit the shows! Maybe I can help with the behind the scenes stuff to make your jobs easier." He spoke, trying to ease the impact.

"You sure, Oz?" Qrow asked, looking at his friend intently.

Ozpin merely nodded his head, taking a sip of coffee.

Qrow sighed, trusting the teacher's intuition.

"Jaune Arc."

Jaune's eyes widened in surprise. Immediately he felt Pyrrha's arms wrap around him in a tight hug.

"I did it." He said numbly, hardly able to accept the fact his name was called. He hugged Pyrrha back in a daze as Ruby patted him on the back and Nora slapped his shoulder hard, grinning from ear to ear.

Pyrrha pulled back, blushing heavily. "I'm sorry! I'm just happy for you! This is going to be amazing!"

Jaune just smiled, before it faltered. "I made the drumline... I have to start practicing. I need to practice even more. I need to memorize the music immediately. Where are my drumsticks?"

Gently resting a hand on her panicked friend's shoulder, Pyrrha offered him a warm smile. "It's okay Jaune. We have time to worry about that in the future, for now it's okay to celebrate. Let's hope for our friends for now, okay?"

Jaune nodded, feeling his heart-rate slow to a healthy tempo again. "Right."

Qrow just cleared his throat, mildly amused by the antics of the group in the back. While their relation to Ruby had no impact on his judgment, Ozpin had insisted they be fair and reasonable, he was glad it had worked out. It reminded him of his own past and celebrating with friends.

"Now then, the Quads."

Everyone snapped to attention again.

"We have four spots. First: Thomas Rodrigo."

The boy in the back with short hair just grinned, fist bumping Tyler and wincing as the girl next to him punched him in the shoulder.

"Bianaca Katsume."

The girl smirked, sharing a fist bump with Thomas before Ashe tackled her into a hug.

"Lie Ren."

Ren let out a sigh of relief, smiling up at Jaune who put a hand on his shoulder.

Next to him Nora was grinning, proud of her friend. Though for just a moment her grin faltered. Maybe she hadn't made the line? Doubt started to creep into her mind. Maybe she should have practiced more. Would she be separated from her friends for the rest of the year? She didn't think she could make it on the pit if she didn't make quads. Dancing was also difficult for her.

Nora looked up at a gentle reassuring hand on her own, seeing Ren smiling at her.

"Nora Valkyrie."

Nora slammed into Ren in a hug, knocking them both backwards off the chair as she giggled. "We made it!"

Jaune and Ruby shared a double high five. "We all made it!" They said happily before quieting down after a moment. They realized there were other's in the room disappointed and they didn't want to brag.

As Qrow read off the names of the bass drummers, Jaune just slumped back in his chair. "I can't believe we all made it."

XxXxXxXxX

Qrow finished naming the bass drummers as Ozpin took the podium again.

"Now then, congrats to the students who made the cut. Again, I'd like to encourage you all who feel disappointed to persist and audition for our Pit. We need an equally splendid front ensemble for our show to work. I'd also like to remind everyone on the line that these roles are a bit tentative. The first few practices will be critically important if we are to make sure everyone is in their proper spot. I suggest you all keep up your practicing. We will see those interested for auditions friday for our front ensemble, and our first practice will be held next Wednesday."

Everyone nodded. "Thank you Ozpin."

Smiling briefly, Ozpin walked off and returned to his office.

Qrow was about to follow him when the doors to the band room open and Winter walked in. Pausing, they looked at each other.

"Did anyone meet your "oh so high" standards? Or did you fail all these kids?" Qrow asked, raising an eyebrow.

"I'll have you know this year has a promising selection of students. Our Color Guard will steal the show. I just hope your Motley Crew turned out okay despite your drunken judgment." She replied curtly.

"Enough! Now let's meet up to compare notes." Glynda ordered, walking between Qrow and Winter, making them flinch before they followed her, glaring at each other.

Ruby and Yang shared a look. If Winter was back, that meant the Color Guard auditions were over, right? That meant they knew the results.

After a few moments of nervous whispering, Weiss and Blake entered the room again. Everyone stared at them expectantly, dying to know the results. Slowly Weiss and Blake both raised their hands, giving the group a thumbs up.

The group's eyes widened as Ruby and Yang suddenly let out a cheer. Ruby dashed across the room, wrapping Weiss in a tight hug. Yang hurried over herself, punching Blake in the arm as she grinned happily. It was a miracle, they had all made it together.

Velvet stood up nervously. "Um... do you know if Coco...?"

Blake just looked at Velvet, opening her mouth to speak when the doors to the band room opened again.

"Are you seriously doubting me, Velvs? Please, I aced the auditions."

"After you were chewed out for being late." Blake added after a moment, causing the group to laugh as Coco looked away indignantly.

Jaune just threw up his arms in a stretch as he leaned back in his chair. The miracle had happened, they all made it together. They would be together for the entire season, assuming nothing major happened during the first practice.

"We did it, Pyrrha!" He spoke happily.

Glancing over, he saw his best friend with her head bowed. Her eyes were closed as she clasped her hands together, mouthing some words silently. Waiting patiently, he saw her open her eyes after a moment. She beamed at Jaune. "We really did all make it. I'm very thankful for that. I look forward to spending the rest of the year with all of you."

Simply smiling, Jaune let out a yawn before resting his head on her shoulder. With the fact revealed that they had all made it, the adrenaline left Jaune's system leaving him tired.

Pyrrha just smiled, resting her head against his. She really was thankful for this opportunity.

Yang glanced over at Jaune and Pyrrha, quickly snapping a picture on her phone before Blake hit her in the side.

"Don't tease them." She offered a moment, stretching herself.

Throwing an arm over Blake's shoulder, Yang pulled her close. "Thanks for doing this. I'm sure you'll have fun." She spoke in a sincere tone.

Shaking her head, Blake smiled. "I wanted to do this. I want to have fun with all of you."

Snickering, Yang was happy to see how far Blake had come and how much more open she had become after their time being friends.

"Did your sister give you an easy time?" Ruby asked Weiss curiously, always hearing about her in the past but only meeting her on occasion. She had heard that she had done dance in college, but had no idea that she could teach Color Guard.

Shaking her head, Weiss grimaced. "Winter is very... practical. I can assure you she gave me no special treatment. Though, I must admit it's nice to know what she looks for in an audition. Congratulations on making Snare though."

Ruby just beamed, kicking her foot bashfully. "Qrow might have stuck up for me a bit. He was the one who taught me after all."

On the other side of the group Nora was still practically hanging off of Ren. "We did it Ren!" She chirped happily.

Nodding, Ren smiled. "Yes we did."

Standing up, Nora began to fidget with the hem of her shirt. Her usual playful smile was replaced by a bashful smile. "We get to be with them for the rest of this year to. It... really feels like a family, you know? One of our own."

Ren just stared at her for a moment. Smiling, He reached up and pet her head. "Of course they're our family. Nothing is going to separate us."

Just softly smiling for a moment, Nora stared at her best friend. She burst out into a grin before she turned and lept towards Jaune and Pyrrha. "We did it guys!"

"Bwaah!" Pyrrha exclaimed in surprise, jumping as Nora crashed into her and Jaune's lap.

"Nora!" Jaune said, in surprise.

Both Jaune and Pyrrha had nearly fallen asleep from just resting in peace for that moment, and Nora's sudden entrance had startled them. Turning to look at each other, Jaune and Pyrrha both yelped as their heads collided accidentally as they recoiled backwards. Nora's tackle had shifted them and their new awkward position had resulted in a headbutt.

Nora grinned sheepishly as their pair rubbed their heads while the rest of the friends in the area burst out laughing.

"Nora!" They said together, standing up and Nora slid off their lap and onto the ground in a heap.

Soon enough, everyone was laughing together as they chatted about what to expect from their first practice. No one could quite remember who had been the first person to suggest the idea, but soon enough they had decided they all wanted to go celebrate so they all flooded out to the parking lot. Today deserves milkshakes and hamburgers so they were going to celebrate at a local burger joint.

Little did they know, that day would just be the first of many celebrations they would get to experience that year, and a precursor to all the heartbreak that would accompany it as well.

XxXxXxXxX

Thank you for reading! I apologize for the delay. All of my freetime has vanished, so it's a bit more difficult for me to find time to write now. I will still do my best to update consistantly though, and the ending to Arc's Metalworks is coming.

I know I included a lot of terms from percussion. If anything is confusing, mention it in a review and I'll go over it before the next chapter to clarify. I'm doing my best to explain anything I say.

You may recognize my OC's, Tommy, Bia, Ashe, and Tyler. Don't worry, they really won't be getting any real attention in this story. I just mentioned them for two reasons. 1, I like name dropping my characters. 2, having established names for the rest of the line is useful from a practical point of view. They may be mentioned in a scene here and there, but they really won't get too much attention, promise. This story is about RWBY, JNPR, Velvet and Coco.

Side note, no bassdrummers in this series but I do love the bassdrum. I played it myself, it'd just be awkward to have one or two characters on the bassline due to how close-knit and connected the line is. I bounced between a few different characters but ended up with this combination for now.

I dropped plenty of hints about the lives and backstories of the main cast in this chapter. Still a bit clunky, just trying to establish it and reveal what has already happened in the past. A lot of stuff will sort of mirror the show, in some way.

I'm excited about this story, and depending on how it goes I may drop a chapter or two for Busking occasionally as well. I kinda hate bugging for reviews, but I'd love to hear your thoughts so I can gauge the reaction and what I need to keep in mind. I hope you all have a wonderful day! :D


	3. The Trouble

Sorry for the delay! Another kinda long chapter! More afterwards.

XxXxXxXxX

Blake sat comfortably, her book resting in her lap while she propped her feet up on the chair in front of her. Next to her Yang was drumming away on a practice pad on her lap, telling her about how much fun it was going to be. Also recounting some fond memories of playing with Qrow when she was a kid and first started to be interested in percussion.

"... and that was the first time I got to go backstage at a show. Also almost the first night I got to try a beer. I've never seen my dad that mad, I'm honestly surprise he didn't arrest Qrow right there. Or assault him. Either one." Yang said idly, smiling at the memory.

Blake couldn't help but laugh at the thought. She had met Yang's dad a few times by this point. He was a cop, though you wouldn't expect it from his home life. Nowadays he was a pretty great single dad, pampering both his daughters and being fully supportive of them. Yang had explained to her one night, when they had stayed up really opening up about their past, that Ruby was only her step sister technically. Her mom had left when she was still a kid. They had been college sweethearts, gotten hitched and had Yang. Eventually though, she left. Blake knew Yang still craved to meet her someday. Then her dad had fallen in love with one of the other officers in the force, Ruby's mom. They had Ruby together, but after stumbling into an armed robbery while off duty and running groceries with Ruby, Summer had been shot in the conflict and succumbed to her wounds. To this day, she was still both Yang and Ruby's absolute hero. Part of the reason Yang was still considering joining the army in the future.

"I can't really imagine your dad in a fight." Blake answered after a moment.

Yang laughed. "Neither can I. But I've heard stories from his co-workers. He's scary than he seems apparently." She remarked, happily drumming. Pausing mid beat, she turned her head. "That reminds me. Hey Rubes, do you still have the money dad gave you? We need to go shopping on the way home. He's going to be late tonight."

Ruby shot up from her spot on the ground. "Uhhh..." In a flurry she zoomed across the band room, ripping open her locker and throwing stuff out behind her.

After a few minutes of chaotic out pour, she mumbled something from deep inside the cubby.

Popping out after a moment she held up the envelope. "Got it!"

Weiss just pulled Ruby's hoodie out of her face, dropping it on the floor. She had unfortunately been standing in the splash zone of Ruby's excavation and was currently littered with clothing and bits of paper and garbage that had been liberated from the redhead's cubby.

"Don't you ever clean in there?" She asked, cocking a hip with a hand on it.

"I did last week!" Ruby defended herself.

"Then how did it end up this messy again?"

Ruby touched the tips of her fingers together. "I just kinda jam things into it."

Weiss scoffed. "That's your problem." Moving over, she opened her own locker.

Jaw dropping, Ruby stared inside it. It was perfectly organized, even a little a little pen holder had been stuck to the inside of the door, allowing Weiss to keep her pens and notes organized.

"That's so clean!" Ruby said in awe. "You have to help me."

Weiss just stared at her, about to say no when she saw Ruby's puppy eyes staring back at her.

"Fine." She said, moving over to Ruby's locker. School had ended for the day, and until practices started next week, there wasn't much they could do. Most of the practice rooms aside from one had been claimed by students still hoping to find their luck at the front ensemble auditions tomorrow. Weiss figured staying here and helping Ruby beat returning home to Winter's empty place. No doubt she'd still be working till late into the night.

"Why don't you help me keep my locker clean?" Nora asked, from her spot upside down. She was laying with her back on the ground, her feet propped up on the chair. Ren merely sat next to her, calmly running through some exercises next to her. "Because we both know that is a lost cause."

Nora giggled. "True~ That's why I just keep my important stuff in your locker. It never gets lost that way."

Ren just smiled. It was true, he often was in possession of any important papers, or money she had to keep on hand. Nora was certainly responsible, she just had a habit of misplacing things so Ren didn't mind keeping tabs on it. It had just become routine for them.

"Wanna see who can play faster?" Yang called over to Ren, standing up with a smirk.

Shaking his head, he looked back at the Blonde. "I'm pretty sure we both know who would win in that contest."

Ignoring his protests, Yang moved two chairs back to back as she set the drum pad on top between them, standing on one side. "Come on. We'll just run some exercises. I'm bored and Blake is ignoring me for her book."

Said girl merely stuck her tongue out and turned the page.

After a moment of internal debate, Ren sighed and stood up and moved over towards Yang. "Very well."

"We'll start off with the basic quarter, eighth, sixteenth pattern to warm up. Ready? On my c-"

Everyone flinched as a large crash sounded from one of the practice rooms, followed by a yelp of pain.

Leaning over, Yang saw Jaune on the ground in the practice room with his snare on. Pyrrha was doing her best to help him up despite her own snare getting in the way.

A moment later the doors to the practice room blew open as Jaune stormed out. "I'm fine Pyrrha! I just need some fresh air. Don't worry." He snapped out with undirected anger. Slamming open the old door to the band room, the blonde stomped his way towards the parking lot and away from the band room.

Pyrrha just stared after him, worry etched on her features as she slid her drumsticks into the bag on the side of the drum.

"Yikes, meltdown already?" Yang asked, a level of concern in her voice despite her teasing words.

Taking off her harness, Pyrrha fiddled with her hands. "He's just a little frustrated. He already feels behind the curve with drumming, and trying to add in balance and movement is just putting more on his plate." She explained her guess, debating what was the best option.

"I'll go bring him back!" Nora offered cheerfully. She couldn't let her friend stay brewing in anger, now could she?

Shaking her head, Pyrrha stepped forward. "I'll get him. Just... Yang? Can you check to make sure the snare is okay? I don't think there's any damage but Jaune went down pretty hard."

Yang saluted, moving towards the practice room where the drum had been discarded.

Ren offered her an encouraging smile before he turned back to Nora, trying to distract her.

Steeling herself, Pyrrha knew that she had to get to the bottom of this. Jaune normally had pretty good patience when it came to learn new tasks. He had never exploded like that before, not when learning music. Not even when drilling for a solo on the marimba. There was something else eating at him.

Making her way out of the band room, she began to hurry down the sidewalk, looking for any signs of him. She knew he wouldn't have gone far. Sure enough she found him a moment later, pacing back and forth with his hands locked behind his head. He seemed to be arguing internally about something.

"Jaune?" She asked softly, watching him freeze and slowly turn to look at her.

Shifting his gaze just over her shoulder, he scratched the back of his head. "I'm... sorry for blowing up like that. That wasn't very cool."

Shaking her head, Pyrrha stepped closer. "Never mind that. What's wrong, Jaune? You know you can tell me anything."

Jaune offered her her favorite smile before he looked away. "I'm just... starting to regret this."

"...this?" She asked after a moment.

"Auditioning for drumline."

Pyrrha's stomach dropped. She had known him to be full of self doubt, and his confidence had taken quite a few blows in the past. But for him to regret something he obviously wanted so much? Something he had succeeded in?

"Is it because the moving is difficult? I'm sure you're just out of practice. With enough time, you will be moving just like you used to on your drumline."

"Pyrrha-"

"Jaune, I'm serious. You work so hard. You've marched once, you can do it again."

"Seriously, Pyrrha. I just..."

"Jaune! Listen. I know you can do this. You've done this before, and you've passed the auditions. You can't let your frustrations get the better of you. Some honest hard wor-"

"I don't deserve this!" Jaune shouted out suddenly, his fists clenching at his sides.

Jaw dropped, Pyrrha stared at him confused. "Jaune, that's a horrible thing to say! Of course you do." She replied. How could he not deserve to be on the drumline.

"No, I don't! I never did drumline..." He turned his back on her, unable to meet her gaze.

The feeling that had been building in Pyrrha for a while not turned molten hot in her stomach. "Wh-What do you mean?"

"I mean I didn't compete in a drumline, I never preformed anywhere. I don't deserve my spot!" Turning to stare at her, all the frustration was boiling up as the truth exploded from him. "I lied! I failed to get into the drumline in middle school, but I still hung around it so I took what I knew, formed a story, and I lied."

"What? But... why?" Pyrrha asked, mostly speechless. She had had some suspicions he might have been lying, but normally Jaune was so honest and straight forward it could be a flaw. She loved his honest nature, but to make such a lie?

"Cause _this_ is what I always wanted to do." Jaune turned away from her. "So many of my family members have been good at music. I've always wanted to be in drumline since middle school, but I could never make it. I'm just not good at music." He confessed.

Pyrrha placed her hand on his shoulder gently. "That's not true. You're amazing at the piano."

Jaune turned to her. "That's not true! I've spent countless hours playing it, and I'm still only okay at it. If you spent half the time I did you'd be far better than I am."

Pyrrha paused, unsure of what to say. It may be true, she wasn't sure. She had a natural gift for music, and if she had applied herself she may be able to catch up to him at a faster pace.

"I'm desperate, okay? I knew all of you guys would make it. You guys work hard, and are talented so I knew you could get a spot. There was no way I would land a position if I didn't have something going for me. So I had to tell them something."

Pyrrha reached out to touch his arm but he pulled away.

"I'm sorry, okay?! I'm sorry I lied to you. I'm sorry I lied to all of you. The guilt is just eating me up. I don't deserve the spot. I should tell Ozpin and Qrow before the first practice so they can find someone else to give you guys a proper chance at the competition."

"Jaune..." Pyrrha's mind raced to process everything and find the right words.

"Just... give me some time, okay? I need to think."

"If that's what you think is best..." Pyrrha said after a moment. Turning, she began to slowly walk towards the band room, lost in thought.

Pacing back and forth, Jaune struggled to come up with anything. The truth was out there. Lying to Pyrrha had killed him on the inside every word he said. He knew how much she trusted him, and he had spit on that trust. Nothing was worth lying to Pyrrha, not even being on drumline.

Would she tell on him? Shaking his head, he knew she wouldn't. Pyrrha was the most honest soul he knew, but she wouldn't sell him out like that. She was far too loyal even when he didn't deserve it.

Before he could think of a solution, he saw someone approaching.

"Oh, Jaune." A deep voice said.

Jaune's eyes widened as he saw who was addressing him.

"Cardin!"

He hefted his sports bag over his shoulder, smirking at him. "I couldn't help but overhear you two. So you lied to get into your little drum thing? I never expected _you_ to be such a rebel."

Jaune's eyes widened. "Please, Cardin, _please_ , don't tell anyone!" He might want to tell the truth, but he wanted to do it carefully. If it was spread around it could lead to drama and potentially trouble for others.

Laughing, Cardin just smirked at Jaune. "Jaune, come on! I'd never rat on a friend like that!"

Jaune hesitated. "A... a friend?" They certainly had never been friends before. In fact, Cardin had often amused himself by picking on Jaune in their shared classes.

"Of course!" Cardin said as he threw him in a head lock. "We're friends now, Jauney Boy! And the way I see it, as long as you're there for me when I need you, we'll be friends for a _long_ time." He thought for a moment. "Practice just ended for me, and me and my friends are starving. But we're a little low on cash, you wouldn't mind spotting us would you?"

Jaune just stared at him. "O... of course not. I'll get my wallet."

Cardin just patted him on the back as he texted his friends. "Hurry up now."

XxXxXxXxX

Pyrrha had wandered into the band room alone, still staring at the ground.

"Took you two long enough, did you two finally end up making ou-" Yang trailed off as she saw Pyrrha had returned alone.

Everyone froze. Pyrrha _never_ failed to comfort an upset Jaune, the same way Yang could help Blake and her sister, Nora could help Ren, and Ruby could get through to Weiss.

Yet here she was, returning alone.

Immediately Yang, Nora, and Ruby all stood up. "What's wrong?"

Yang cracked her knuckles. "What did he do?" Judging by the expression on Pyrrha's face, he had really hurt her feelings. She knew it wasn't likely malicious but whatever had happened needed to be resolved. What could be an amazing year of memories wasn't going to be sullied by some fight on the first week.

Pyrrha shook her head, holding her hands together tighter. "It's nothing. Just a disagreement."

Faltering, Yang was unsure of what to do. She knew Pyrrha would never sell out Jaune, even if he really had messed up. She couldn't just show up and accuse Jaune of something if he was innocent either.

They all just stood around for a moment, unsure of how to help their friend, or guess what had happened. Before they could properly decide on a course of action, the doors opened again.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha squeaked out in surprise.

Jaune just smiled meekly and walked past her. "I... I'm sorry." He muttered out as he made his way towards his locker.

Pyrrha felt her feet locked in place as she watched her friend move past her. Once again, she was caught off guard. His apology had seemed honest, but that was never how any of their fights had ended. Normally they apologized to each other, and he'd go out of his way to make it up to her in some way. He'd try and pamper her until she finally managed to reassure him that she wasn't in fact mad. But here he was, practically ignoring her. All the alarms in her head was going off. The only thing that would make Jaune brush off his friends would be another problem coming up.

Jaune just had packed his backpack and made his way back towards the exit.

"Jaune?" Ruby said as he reached for the handle.

"Uh, sorry guys. I'm going to head out earlier today. I have... plans..."

The rest of the group was suddenly hearing their own sirens going off. It wasn't unheard of for Jaune to have other plans, but they had all known they had planned on staying and practicing tonight with Pyrrha and the rest.

"Really?" Nora asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah..."

Yang moved over, standing between him and the door and crossing her arms. "With who?" She asked in a stern, yet concerned voice.

Jaune's gaze just dropped to the ground. Did he tell them? He couldn't reveal what situation he hand found himself in without telling them the whole truth. That was something he needed time to do. He wanted to do it right. He had lied to them already, and if he was going to set things right he wanted to do it properly. He had already learned how much poor communication could mess things up.

"Jaune, is everything okay?" Pyrrha asked, stepping towards him finally.

Jaune just flashed her a grin, one Pyrrha saw through instantly. She had come to know all of his expressions over their time together. That was definitely a faked smile.

"Yeah! I said I'm fine. I just have some last minute plans. Sorry for everything."

"With who?" Yang repeated, not budging from her spot between him and the door. Maybe he was telling the truth, but she knew that when pressured any lie would crumble. She wanted to get to the bottom of this.

"With Cardin." Jaune confessed.

Once again, everyone froze. Out of _everyone_ in the entire school, that was the last person they expected. Especially if he was lying, anyone else would have been more likely. It wasn't exactly a secret that Cardin was a bully. He picked on anyone who happened to be in his sights that day. Jaune, having shared classes with him, was often his target. A fact that annoyed all of his friends very much. Even velvet used to be a target until their friend Yatsuhashi, who was also on the football team with Cardin, had stepped in.

Before anyone could even form another sentence, Jaune had pushed past Yang and hurried out the door.

"Did he say Cardin? As in Cardin Winchester?" Blake asked after a moment.

"Why would Jaune hang out with the likes of him?" Weiss asked in a huff, crossing her arms.

As much as Jaune could get on her nerves from time to time, he was worlds better than Cardin in her mind. The fact he would stoop so low as too fraternize with him even had her concerned. It was definitely out of character for one of her newer friends.

Pyrrha just slowly moved over to a seat, sitting down in shock. She knew they had just been in a fight, but for him to suddenly want to hang out with Cardin?

Cracking her knuckles, Nora stood up. "I say we go find out whats up. I'll force Cardin to tell us."

Ren put a hand on her shoulder. "I think... we need to be careful. Jaune clearly has made a choice. Perhaps we should trust in him? He'll talk to us when he's ready."

Some of the other heads nodded in the room at Ren's words. It was true, Jaune's business was his own and it seemed like he wasn't mad at Pyrrha anymore. They could only do so much after all.

Pyrrha on the other hand stared down at her clenched hands. Could it have anything to do with Jaune's lie? Why would Cardin care though. He wasn't even in band, in fact he seemed to detest it. Maybe Jaune just found someone else to talk to?

Before she could properly make a decision, Ozpin had walked out. "I'm afraid I'll be closing the room early today, I have a meeting to attend." He announced, before going from practice room to practice room to let everyone know.

Figuring it was about time most of them got home anyway, they all began to pack up their stuff. Pyrrha just lingered at her locker, staring at Jaune's with worry. How had their happiness turned to drama so quickly?

At Ruby's hand on her shoulder, she turned and smiled softly.

"Let's go, okay? We'll figure things out tomorrow." The younger girl offered.

Nodding, Pyrrha knew she was right. Tomorrow they would get to the bottom of the situation.

Or at least they thought they would. Jaune himself, however, seemed to be proving an obstacle. He was no longer eating lunch in the band room, during class he just stood at attention not giving Pyrrha a chance to properly speak to him. He had even passed on attending the Front Ensemble auditions, citing more "plans." No one could properly pin him down to talk. Even Ren only got that "Everything was fine" and that they all "worried too much about him."

All of Pyrrha's messages that weekend had ended up ignored, with only one reply coming saying "Sorry, I got a lot of homework. Can't really talk this weekend."

Which Pyrrha knew had to be a lie, right? Every one of his class had at least one of their friends in it, they had chosen their schedules together after all. Everyone agreed there hadn't been a sudden increase in workload that could have caused him to be busy all weekend.

When Monday came, Pyrrha was determined. She had planned out all the possible locations he could be in order to track him down. Something was wrong with her friend, and come hell or high water she was going to get to the bottom of it. During lunch, when she saw him quickly sneak into the band room to get his lunch, she sprung into action. Y

When Jaune turned around after closing his cubby, he found himself face to face with his favorite pair of green eyes.

Pyrrha placed her hand on the wall next to his head as she leaned forward, practically trapping him. "Jaune, we need to talk. You've been avoided me."

Jaune's eyes widened. "No I haven't! I told you, I'm just busy."

Pyrrha's eyes narrowed slightly. He was definitely hiding something. From this distance she didn't miss the sad look cross his face as he looked off to the side dejectedly.

"Is this about your li-" She was cut off as the band room door slammed open.

"Jaune! Hurry up. The longer we take, the longer the line will be." Cardin's voice called out. Next to him, his three main friends were laughing next to him.

"Coming!" Jaune called out, quickly ducking and moving free of Pyrrha. "Sorry." He confessed as he quickly made his way out of the room, ignoring the judging gazes from the rest of his friends.

Nora just watched Cardin throw an arm around Jaune's shoulder, and drag him along.

"We should break his legs." She announced, very unhappy at seeing one of her best friends being roped along by him.

Weiss crossed her arms. "I certainly hope he hasn't learned anything from that brute."

Ren just stared quietly at the door, lost in thought. The time for remaining passive may have passed.

Dropping her lunch on the chair next to her, Pyrrha dropped down. Her appetite was dashed after that. She had failed yet again to figure out just what was going on.

"I don't like him." Ruby said after a moment of silence.

"Well that's putting it mildly." Yang muttered, still frowning down at her drum pad as she practiced a roll.

"I'm sure Jaune knows exactly what he's doing." Pyrrha muttered, her fists clenched at her side. She felt frustration towards her friend bubbling up. Not necessarily at him, but because of the situation. Something was wrong if he was being wrapped up in Cardin's scheme. Some sort of problem, and he wasn't coming to them. Didn't he know that they cared about him as his friends?

They were all friends. Friends care for each other, and are there for each other through thick and thin. He didn't need to try to work through whatever could be wrong by himself. They were there for him, just like he had been there for them so many times.

"You'll never guess what I just saw!" Coco called out as she entered the band room, a confused looking velvet behind her.

"Jaune just got in a car with Cardin and the others. I didn't know he's friends with them." Velvet answered after a moment, hints of disappointment in her voice. She had always liked to clumsy blonde, finding him sweet and honest. The idea he would be all chummy with a guy like Cardin made her stomach churn.

"He's not." Pyrrha answered quickly.

"Or he wasn't at least." Yang added after a moment.

Coco raised an eyebrow. "Sounds like there's some drama. Spill." She ordered, taking a sip of her coffee as she leaned forward, interested.

After Ruby had recounted everything that had happened the past few days, Coco thought for a moment. "You guys are so childish about this. If something is wrong, just ask him about it."

"He's avoiding us." Ren offered after a moment. "He doesn't want to speak it seems."

Coco raised an eyebrow again. "There are 7 of you, and one of him. If you are really that concerned about him, just force him to talk. It wouldn't be that difficult."

"Coco! We aren't forcing Jaune to do anything. We don't need to set a trap for him." Velvet quickly said in his defense.

"A trap! That's it!" Nora said, her eyes getting a dangerous glint in them.

Coco smirked. "Now you're talking. I love your ideas, Velv."

Looking horrified, Velvet set down her container. "That's not what I meant!"

"I got an idea." Yang said with a smirk as she leaned in, beginning to speak in a hushed tone. Soon the rest of the group had agreed.

Normally Pyrrha would have been a bit more hesitant about planning anything involving Jaune without his knowledge, but Coco was right. They were letting this go on far too long. Especially if her suspicions were correct and his lying was tied into all of this. If Jaune needed help, then he was going to get it whether he wanted it or not. If she was wrong, she'd make it up to him later. For now, they needed to plan.

XxXxXxXxX

Leaning against the bench, Jaune was watching Cardin and his goons attempt to flirt with some poor girl who had also traveled to McDonald's for lunch. Jaune sighed, feeling bad for her but knew there wasn't much he could do. Besides, judging by the hair flip and her storming away he figured Cardin had just been rejected hard. He snickered, before attempting to hide his smile. He knew if Cardin caught him with it he'd be in a world of pain.

Soon enough Cardin was walking back, clearly frustrated from his failed attempts. By then, Jaune had managed to hide his smile.

"Dumb Bitch." Cardin muttered, annoyed. Though, looking at Jaune brought a smirk to his face. "Thanks for buying us lunch, buddy. We're a bit low on cash so we're grateful to have such a generous friend around us." Hoping up on the bench next to Jaune, Cardin thought for a moment.

"So, Pyrrha." He stated, after a pause.

Jaune's eyes widened. "What about her?"

"You're good friends with her, right?" He asked.

Jaune felt a lump form in his throat. "Yeah... why?"

"Surely you got something on her."

"Excuse me?" Jaune asked, utterly confused.

Letting out a sigh at Jaune's stupidly, Cardin shook his head. "I mean dirt. Secrets. _Something_. She's been real mouthy to me lately, and it's getting old. She's too _perfect_. Someone like that has got to have some skeletons in their closet. Why don't you fill in your friends? Just a detail or two to make her a little humbler."

Jaune backed away from him. "I'm not telling you anything about Pyrrha."

Standing up himself, Cardin raised an eyebrow. "Did you forget where you stand? All it will take is one trip to Ozpin's office and you'll probably be kicked out of band. I hear teacher's don't respond well to students lying. I should know."

Jaune hesitated for just a moment. He honestly did know a lot about Pyrrha, she trusted him an amount that surprised even him. But that was it, she _trusted_ him. He wasn't going to put her in Cardin's line of sight even if it meant he had to quit band.

"No." Jaune said firmly.

"Last chance, Jauney boy. I'm not asking you again. Talk." Cardin said, reaching up and grabbing Jaune's shoulder in a tight grip.

Staring at him, Jaune felt all the anger and frustration that had built up over the past few days boil over. All the homework Cardin made him do, the money he had spent on lunches and food. Even the trouble he got in for taking the blame for Cardin spilling a garbage can over while rough housing with his friends, and having to pick up the rotten food himself.

"I said no!" Jaune said before he shoved Cardin hard in the chest.

Stumbling backwards, Cardin tripped over the bench and crashed hard onto the ground. He winced as his head was ringing. Standing up quickly, he got in Jaune's face.

"Oh, now you've done it."

Jaune didn't have time to react before Cardin's fist connected to his face. He went down. _Hard._ Jaune struggled to try and get back up when he felt Cardin's foot connect to his stomach. He did his best to cover his face. Every time he tried to get up, he felt someone kick him back down. This only went on for a minute or two before a booming voice rang out. "Hey! Kids! What's going on?" Some man yelled out from across the street.

Planting one last kick in Jaune's side, Cardin quickly scrambled away with the rest of his friends. "Say goodbye to your friends, Jaune." Cardin called out, hopping in their car and peeling out of the lot.

Just laying on the cold, hard ground for a moment, Jaune struggled to catch his breath. His body hurt, but his mind felt relieved. He hadn't betrayed his friends, and he was done being Cardin's slave. Whatever came next would happen, but at least he could look Pyrrha in the eye again.

The man finally reached Jaune, helping him up.

"Are you okay, kid? Who were they? Give me their names and we'll report them to the authorities." The man said, helping Jaune up.

Jaune glanced up at the man, noticing his neat appearance, and nice suit. This man practically screamed military, though judging by his modern suit it seemed more of ex-military. "I'm okay. It was just a disagreement." Jaune tried to play it off.

The large man merely stared at him for a moment. "I don't know what happened, but it looked like you tried to keep on fighting even while losing." He paused for a moment. "It's important for a man to keep fighting, even when he's been knocked down. You did good." He said, offering a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Though, physical violence is almost never the answer." He said before walking off. "You best get that eye looked at. It'll heal pretty quickly if you're lucky."

Reaching up, Jaune touched his eye before wincing. That punch had been harder than he thought.

Sitting on the bench for a minute, Jaune tried to catch his breath. The adrenaline was wearing off and the pain was settling in. Still, he had to get back to school and try and tell his friends the truth at least before Cardin could.

Standing up, Jaune froze in place. School. Looking around, he realized he wasn't actually anywhere near the school. They had driven pretty far away for lunch, and they had ditched him here. He also had spent the last of his cash on lunch, meaning he couldn't afford the bus fare. He couldn't call his friends either cause they would be in class. Plus, he couldn't face them yet. The only other option was his sister, and facing her with a black eye wasn't something he wanted either. He didn't want Cardin to die after all. With a groan, he started walking back. He was in for a _long_ walk. Hopefully he could make it before he missed third or fourth period, but he wasn't counting on it.

XxXxXxXxX

Pyrrha had been pretty happy with their plan. One of them would wait at every possible exit to both the band room, and the adjoining choir room. Jaune kept his backpack in his locker, so he would have leave through one of those doors. Whoever he ended up running into would delay him. If he didn't confess right there, Nora would be off her leash. She would literally drag him if needed into the drum closet, where Pyrrha would be waiting, and lock the door. Jaune wouldn't be allowed out until the whole truth was revealed, and with the little privacy there, Pyrrha could also be direct and ask about the lie without letting others know.

What they hadn't expect, was to hear Ren report that Jaune hadn't attended his math class after lunch. Maybe he had just been late getting back? Coco had said that she had seen him drive somewhere with Cardin. However, when Jaune hadn't entered by the start of band class, Pyrrha was freaking out. By the end of band class with no-show, Pyrrha was debating calling the cops. She had actually asked Yang what the minimum amount of time was before you could filing a missing person's report. Yang however, had managed to talk sense into the overly panicked teenage girl, and explain that there are plenty of reasons Jaune could have gone home during lunch. Cardin, while a jerk, wasn't evil. Maybe Jaune had just stormed off and went home to cool off. Maybe he started feeling sick and just went home. His communication hadn't been the best recently so there was no need to fly off the handle with worry.

In truth, Pyrrha appreciated Yang's level-headedness. Normally Pyrrha could keep calm in any situation, but after the stress of a week of Jaune avoiding her, and his sudden disappearance, staying calm was the last thing she wanted.

All Pyrrha wanted was to go back to how things were on that night of celebration after the auditions. Everyone was laughing and smiling, why did drama always have to creep into their happiness?

Once she figured out whatever Jaune's problem was, and made sure he was in fact okay, and happy, she would let him have it. She was going to be _very_ clear that she didn't appreciate her best friend shutting her out of his life.

A few minutes had passed after class, and everyone was huddled around Jaune's locker. His disappearance had made them all worried and they wanted to make sure they saw him safe.

"Should we go look for him?" Ruby asked, glancing over at the door.

"Where would we even look?" Weiss countered.

"Can we ask his sister if she's heard from him?" Blake added after a moment.

Pyrrha's eyes widened. "That's a good idea." She quickly fished out her phone. "I got her number a while ago when I stayed with them one weekend." She explained before pausing. Looking up, she saw six pairs of curious eyes.

"You _what?!_ " Nora asked, appalled that such a even had been hidden from her.

Pyrrha shook her head and hands back and forth. "Not like that! My parents had to go out of town for quite a while. Alice offered to take me in so I didn't get too lonely and for some home-cooked meals."

Nora still raised an eyebrow. "We will talk about this later, Missy. Call first!"

Pyrrha quickly dialed the number, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Yo! Red! What's up?" Alice's cheerful voice answered from the other side. "Is everything all right?" Her voice instantly switching to from cheer to concern as she realized Pyrrha wouldn't call her without a reason, no matter how well they got along.

"It's Jaune..."

" _What about him?_ " Alice's voice took on a dangerous edge.

A shiver shot down Pyrrha's spine. Alice was probably the one person who could scare her. She was a big softie, but two tours in the middle east had certainly given her an edge. One she wasn't afraid of showing.

"I take it you haven't heard from him?" Pyrrha asked nervously.

"No. Why?" Alice's words were short and clipped. "What. Happened."

"He didn't show up for third or forth period today. No one has seen him for hours. His phone goes to voicemail, I'm guessing it's dead."

There was a dangerous silence on the other end of the line. Faintly, Pyrrha could hear a muted "that little shit..."

"I'm coming over to the school now. When I get there you're going to tell me _everything_ that you know. Wait there." Alice ordered.

Pyrrha nodded, closing her phone.

"She uh... hadn't heard from him yet." Pyrrha explained.

Yang just face-palmed. "Great. Now we got a missing Arc, _and_ a murderous one. Way to go, Nikos."

Pyrrha just dropped her gaze to the ground. Maybe calling his over-protective sister in a situation that likely sounds worse than it is wasn't the smartest move in hindsight.

They all waited around for a moment, unsure of what to do next when the door to the band room opened again. Out of habit, their eyes looked over. They hoped to see Jaune, but expected to see some other student.

However, when a familiar mop of blonde hair walked in, a hand over one eye they rushed the door.

"Jaune?" Ruby said in surprise.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha said in relief.

"Jaune." Yang said angrily. "Do you know how close we were to calling the cops? What. Happened." She ordered, walking up and practically pinning him to the wall. She did not like being forced to worry so much about her friends.

Jaune looked to the side with his one uncovered eye. "I ended up being left across town during lunch. I didn't have bus fare, and my phone died half-way walking back. I... kinda got lost. Had to ask for directions at a gas station. Can I sit down? I've been walking for a _really_ long time." He begged.

Yang stared at him for a moment before sighing and moving so he could go collapse in a chair.

Collapsing in a heap in the chair, Jaune tilted his head back while he still covered his eye. His feet were killing him.

"Jaune? Why were you left across town? Why are you covering your eye?" Pyrrha asked, concern frantically rising in her voice. She had a suspicion she hoped to God was wrong.

Looking away, Jaune laughed nervously. "Uh... me and Cardin had a disagreement. My eye is fine, I just got some dirt in it." He lied weakly.

Yang narrowed her eyes. "Move your hand now, _Arc_."

Jaune refused, standing up. "I should get home. Rest up after that long walk, you know?"

In a flash, Nora's hand had shot out and ripped his hand away from his face, easily overpowering the boy.

The other seven gasped in surprise as they saw the black eye Jaune was sporting.

Pyrrha's hand's flew up to her mouth in surprise as Yang's fists clenched. "Jaune. What happened? Don't you even _think_ about lying." She asked, practically towering over the taller boy.

Jaune shrunk back. "It was... a bit of a disagreement. Cardin wanted something I wouldn't give him. I kinda shoved him and well... he's bigger than me." Jaune confessed, just tired of lying.

Pyrrha's hands were shaking. So Cardin really was the cause of all this.

"That it. I'm breaking his legs." Nora said in an eerily serious tone.

"I'll help." Yang added, cracking her knuckles.

Ren handed Pyrrha the Ice pack he had gotten from the freezer in Ozpin's office after explaining the situation.

"Jaune, hold still." She ordered, gently placing the ice pack of his eye. It was pretty late, but hopefully this could help at least a little.

Jaune winced, but sat still. "Sorry..." he mumbled out, his gaze drooping.

Pyrrha just sighed. All the frustration she had been feeling just crumbled away. It was hard enough for her to stay mad at Jaune, let alone with him in this state. "It's okay."

"No. It's not." Yang interrupted, crossing her arms. She glared sternly at her friend. "This isn't settled until you explain what is going on. Why you're hanging out with Cardin, and now fighting with him. If you wanted to fight Cardin, you shoulda told me or Nora. We would have _loved_ to help."

Jaune just looked at Pyrrha desperate, but saw she was also wearing a stern look.

Closing his eyes for a moment, he took a deep breath. It seemed like his hand was forced. Standing up, he glanced around the band room "Follow me." He muttered, walking towards the hallway. He lead them further down the hallway, eventually sitting on a set of stairs leading up to the tech booth for the stage. It was usually pretty deserted, and this late after school it was completely abandoned.

The rest of the group settled around the staircase, staring at him intently. They were eager to learn just what had been the deal with their friend.

"Guys... I-"

"Wait!" Ruby cut him off. A moment later Coco and Velvet rushed over.

"There you are! We heard what had happened. You better have a _good_ explanation for this, for your sake." Coco said, lowering her glasses with a finger as she gave him a look. She wasn't particularly close to the boy, but she knew his friends weren't exactly happy with him. She had to admit though she was relieved to see him safe.

A few moments later it clicked. "Whoa, nice shiner." She said, staring at his black eye.

Velvet stood next to her friend, clearly fretting with worry. "You're hurt!" She said worriedly, unable to help.

"Go on." Pyrrha prodded, encouraging Jaune to get back to his explanation.

Jaune just lowered the ice pack, looking down.

"I lied guys. I'm sorry. I was never in a drumline before." He went quiet, waiting to be yelled at.

"...that's it?" Nora said after a moment.

Jaune peaked up, surprised.

Blake, Ruby, Yang, and Ren all had their heads in their hands.

"All this deceit and panic because you lied about what you did in middle school?" Blake said after a moment.

Weiss just scoffed. "What a waste of time."

Jaune looked shocked. "You aren't mad I lied to you?"

Yang glared at Jaune, causing him to shrink back a little. "I'm mad that you avoided us for so long."

Ren raised a hand. "We're missing part of the story. Lying about being in drumline doesn't explain two things. Why would you do it in the first place? And what does that have to do with Cardin."

Every looked from him to Jaune, agreeing with Ren's point.

Jaune looked down. "I have so much fun with you guys in band. When I heard about drumline I wanted to be in it with all of you. But I'm not good at the snare like Yang or Pyrrha. I don't have Ruby or Nora's talent, nor Ren's smarts. I thought that if I didn't have some good point, I wouldn't pass the auditions. So I lied to you guys and the teacher. I'm sorry..."

Blake just rolled her eyes. "That's why you feel so guilty?"

Yang's gaze softened. "I understand that you were scared, but you shouldn't have lied. But as far as lies go, that's a pretty tame one." She offered.

Blake laughed darkly. "I'll say."

Ruby thought for a moment. "Well, you're on the line now. So regardless of how you got on the line, you gotta just keep practicing now, right? We're going to need you for the show." She said with a grin, causing the rest of them to smirk at her expression.

Blake looked at Jaune. "Just because you did something you regret, doesn't mean you can't move forward." She reached up, grabbing one of her arms with the other nervously. "We've all done stuff we regret."

Yang bumped Blake's hip with her own. "Friend's don't judge other's by their past though. We help them move forward."

Blake and Weiss shared a glance before smiling. That was certainly true.

Pyrrha stood up, staring at Jaune intently still. "That still doesn't explain why you were ignoring m- us. What did Cardin do?"

Jaune's gaze dropped. "When I told Pyrrha I lied... he overheard. He told me that if I didn't help him out, he'd tell Ozpin and get me kicked out of drumline and band." Jaune's fist clenched at his side. "I couldn't let that happen. I didn't want to leave you guys." He glanced at them, before his gaze drooped. "But that's over now. He asked me to do something I wouldn't." His gaze flickered to Pyrrha. "So I told him off and he hit me and left me across town. I'm sure he's telling Ozpin any minute now. I'm finished."

Every just stared at Jaune in shock.

"He blackmailed you?!" Pyrrha said in horror. She had a fear it had been something like that, but to think Jaune had been Cardin's errand boy for a week. No wonder he always seemed so miserable. And he did it just to continue to be with them?

"You know, I really will break his legs." Pyrrha said dangerously, looking at Jaune.

"He's lost leg privileges." Nora declared, cracking her knuckles.

Jaune just smiled sadly. "It's okay. It's my fault for getting into this mess. I promise to at least go to your concerts! Maybe Ozpin will still let me help out."

Everyone was quiet for a moment. It was true, Ozpin could be rather strict. Jaune had lied to him directly to try and get an advantage in the auditions. Certainly that wouldn't go without repercussions.

"Nope." Ruby said after a moment, causing other to look at her.

"What?" Jaune asked.

"Nope." Ruby repeated, standing up and brushing dust off her skirt. "That's not going to happen. I'm going to talk to him. I'll find a way to convince him."

Yang smirked, standing next to her sister and resting an arm on her head. "Rubes is right. If we all vouch for him, Ozpin will listen."

Jaune stared at the sisters in shock. "Are you sure?" His eyes glanced around the group.

Blake smirked at him, Nora grinned with a thumbs up. Ren offered a reassuring smile, and Pyrrha gently brushed his arm. Even Weiss just rolled her eyes. "We all worked too hard on this together to let this fall apart because of a stupid lie."

"We'll vouch too!" Velvet said eagerly after a moment. "Right, Coco?"

Coco just laughed, throwing an arm around Velvet's shoulders. "Of course. Besides, it seems like he's already received his punishment for lying."

Jaune just sniffled, over whelmed by his friends.

Pyrrha just smiled, throwing an arm around his shoulders. "It's okay."

Yang smirked and walked over. "You big softie." She muttered while nudging him in the side.

Everyone flinched as Jaune let out a yell of pain. Yang had practically jumped backwards, raising her hands. "I didn't hit you that hard!"

Jaune winced, laughing awkwardly. "Uh, sorry that's a tender spot."

Pyrrha stood up, a serious glare in her eyes. "Jaune. _Stand up._ " She ordered, using her authoritative tone. Instantly Jaune listened out of habit.

"Nora if you would." She said, glancing over at her friend.

Nora saluted before moving behind Jaune.

Jaune raised an eyebrow. "What are you do-" He cut himself short in surprise when he felt Nora grab him from behind, pinning his shoulders.

"Sorry." Pyrrha mumbled apologetically, before she reached forward and lifted his hoodie and shirt.

Everyone gasped in surprise. Jaune's back and sides were littered with bruises. It seems Cardin had done more than the black eye. Hardly a breath later Pyrrha had lowered his hoodie and shirt again as Nora released him.

Yang and Nora were fuming.

"How dare that asshole." Yang snapped, storming back and forth a few steps.

Pyrrha just gently rested a hand on Jaune's chest. "I'm so sorry."

Jaune smiled weakly. "It's fine. It doesn't hurt that bad anymore. Besides, standing up to all four of them felt kinda cool..."

Pyrrha just rolled her eyes, unable to fight the tiny smile on her lips. "It was incredibly stupid of you, but yeah, pretty cool." Then the math added up. "So it wasn't just Cardin? I should have known his friends would have helped."

"Yeah, Yatsu?" Coco said, shifting her weight as she talked into her phone. "Cardin is on your team right? You know Jaune? Yeah, tall, blonde, always around Pyrrha? Turns out he did a number on him with his friends. I'm talking about a serious thrashing. Think you could discipline your teammate for me? Really? Thanks!"

Coco snapped her phone shut, snickering. "Well that helps that."

Yang raised an eyebrow. "Yatsuhashi? He's the quarterback right? He's like 8 feet tall."

Coco shrugged. "6'11, but close enough."

Nora frowned. "Awww there wont be anything left to break."

Jaune looked horrified. "Sure Cardin is a jerk, but beating him up isn't going to fix anything."

Pyrrha rolled her eyes. Of all the times for Jaune's honesty and compassion to show through, defending the guy who just beat him up really didn't need to be it.

Coco just laughed. "I like you, kid. You're too nice. Yatsu isn't the type to just beat someone up. But he will put Cardin in his place. He takes his team very seriously, and doesn't appreciate bullying. I'm sure Cardin will wish he was just beaten up instead."

Velvet was grinning. While normally she was against wishing ill on others, after what Cardin did to Jaune, Velvet could get behind the idea of Yatsu knocking some sense into him.

Pyrrha just sighed, glad everything was out in the open. Looking at Jaune, she stared him directly in the eye. "So Jaune, no more lies. No more avoiding us right? If you find yourself in a problem like that again, talk to us. We'll help you, just like we expect you to help us. Deal?"

Smiling, Jaune nodded. "Deal."

Pyrrha couldn't help herself as she took a few steps forward, hugging him. "Good. I missed you." She muttered, wishing she could hug him tighter but feared hurting him.

Jaune returned the hug. "I missed you too."

Coco just leaned over to Yang. "So how long has this been going on?"

"About a year and a half now."

"They still aren't..."

"Nope."

"Even though..."

"Yup."

"How long do you think..."

"Soon. Or else."

Coco just laughed. She really found this group fun, she should have hung out with them more sooner.

" _JAUNE!_ " A dangerous voice roared out.

Everyone froze, turning their head. A few of them recognized it, including Pyrrha who immediately stepped between Jaune and the source.

"You called _ALICE_?" Jaune whispered in a angry hushed tone to Pyrrha.

Glancing back at Jaune, she offered an apologetic smile. "You were missing, remember?"

Blowing through the doors, a tall woman stormed out. She was dressed in cargo pants and a tank top, her hair pulled back into a pony tail. She had the same shade of hair as Jaune, and a matching set of blue eyes. "Jaune? What the hell happened."

She stormed up to Jaune, who was hiding behind Pyrrha. Turning her gaze to Pyrrha, she frowned. "He doesn't seem exactly to be missing right now, does he?"

Finally close enough to see clearly, she saw his black eye. Freezing in spot, her fist clenched at her side. She practically threw Pyrrha to the side as she crouched down, getting a better look at it. Her anger and sharpness was replaced by concern and tenderness. "Jaune, what happened?"

Jaune tried to look away, but his sister's grip on his chin kept him staring ahead.

"I got in a fight, kinda."

Alice just stared at him intently. Her brother, in a fight? That certainly was out of character. "You didn't use anything I taught you?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. She had made certain to teach him at least the basics of self defense. After the stuff she had seen, she knew it was never a bad idea to at least know how to defend yourself in this world.

Jaune sighed. "I wasn't trying to fight him, I got mad and shoved him. Then he struck back, and you didn't teach me how to deal with four of them." He mumbled out defiantly.

Alice's eyebrows shot upwards. "Four?" Her eyes narrowed. If those four hadn't been kids...

Jaune ripped his chin free. "It's not that bad. I'm done dealing with them now."

Standing up, Alice stared at her brother. She wanted to press the issue, both to figure out why he had been reported to her as "missing" and what had caused him to act violently, but judging by his expression, he was in an awful mood. Feeling her maternal heartstrings tug, she wanted to fix that first and foremost.

She thought for a moment. "Ozpin was gone by the time I got here, so you guys are free..." Looking around at the group, who seemed both a little intimidated by her, and feeling awkward she sighed.

"Jaune."

"Yes?"

"So the reason you've been mopey the past few days was because of these bullies. The same reason you haven't been hanging out with your friends?"

"...yeah."

"But that's over now, right?"

"Yeah... I still gotta deal with Ozpin and hopefully not getting kicked out of drumline."

Alice quirked an eyebrow. Clearly there was much more to this than she thought. Still, she'd get to the bottom of that later. Turning to the rest of the group, she spoke.

"You guys all forgive him for whatever dumb thing he did, right?"

A murmurs of affirmatives came from the group.

"You guys wanna just hang out together, right?"

Another round of yes.

"Okay. Fine. Let's get ice cream. I took the rest of the day off work, might as well use it." Alice said with a shrug.

Instantly the group perked up, fully on board with the idea. "I can only take some of you, so figure out your driving situation.

Jaune grinned up at his sister, punching her in the shoulder. "Thanks for being awesome, sis."

Alice just smirked, messing up his hair. "Anything for you, bro. But we are having a long talk tonight about everything. I do not like hearing that my little brother missed two classes and got in a fight. Do you know how worried I was?" She threatened, narrowing her eyes slightly.

Jaune grinned sheepishly. "Really wasn't my intention, you know."

Once rides had been decided as they were moving back towards the parking lot Nora stopped. "Oh! Alice!"

Alice turned, raising an eyebrow curiously.

In a flash, Nora shot forward and in a quick motion, raised Jaune's hoodie and shirt.

Alice's eyes widened in surprise as she saw the bruises on his body. Her fists clenched at her side. "That's it. We're starting up your lessons again. You clearly need to learn self defense. I'll whip you into shape in no time."

Jaune ripped his hoodie down, turning on Nora with a look of betrayal in his eyes. "How could you?"

Nora just stuck her tongue out. "That's what you get for lying to us and being dumb."

Turning to Pyrrha for help, he saw her just shrug.

"You really should have just talked to me. We could have worked things out faster." She said, a slightly playful tone in her voice.

Jaune just groaned as his sister ushered him and Pyrrha into her car, still going on about what exactly their routine would be, and how he needed a new membership to her gym.

Nudging his good shoulder, Pyrrha smiled softly. "On the bright side, I go to that gym. We can work out together at least!" She chirped happily. Maybe some more good had come from this after all.

Letting out another groan, Jaune knew his life had just gotten a lot busier. Still, the lying off his chest made him feel lighter. As they all headed to meet up at the ice cream parlor, he had learned his lesson. Whatever problem he would have to face, he would rely on his friends, and do his best to be there for them.

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Thank you for reading! Sorry for the delay. New job means less time to write, but I promise to keep updating! Arc's metalworks final chapter coming soon hopefully. This story isn't getting as much attention sadly, so I hope it gets some more attention. I certainly enjoy writing it, so I will continue to do so, but the following feels kinda small. Still, thank you to all of you who continue to read this and I hope the rest is good as well! if you feel up to it, leave a review please. I really appreciate them and they help me improve.

Pretty heavy on the Arkos this chapter, but hopefully I can spread out the attention more in the up coming ones. Been planning some arcs for each of them.

I hope you have a wonderful day! :D


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